Disaster Management and Housing Geography of Srinagar Metropolis - The Case of A City of Environmental Vulnerabilities

Disasters are as old as human history but the dramatic increase and the damage caused by them in the recent past have become a cause of national and international concern. Over the past couple of decades, the frequency and magnitude of both natural and manmade disasters has climbed inexorably all over the globe. The scenario in India is no different from the global context. The Jammu and Kashmir state is a multi-hazard prone region and the capital Srinagar is highly vulnerable to various disasters. While studying about the impact we need to be aware of potential hazards, how, when and where they are likely to occur, and the problems which may result of an event. Although the occurrence of natural disasters cant be stopped but their impact can be reduced. The significance of present study lies in the fact that the present structure of the Srinagar city, its problems and the magnitude of the problems, to be faced by it in future especially related to urban housing growth indicate that the city is heading towards a critical situation of no return. Apropos this, the prime focus of this paper is to study the urban Housing Geography of Srinagar metropolis of Kashmir and thereby suggest some revival measures for urban management of this metropolis vis--vis disaster management.