No abstract

A large number of farmers' livelihoods are susceptible to cyclones and floods, and farmers are taking up several adaptation mechanisms. Previous studies, therefore, have examined determinants of various adaptation options and provide policy suggestions to promote a specific one. However, options are undertaken at different points depending on the nature and intensity of extreme events. Hence, it is imperative to identify factors influencing farmers' decisions to adopt an additional option, particularly during ex-ante and ex-post periods. This could assist policy-makers to enhance various farm-level adaptation options. Using survey data from 285 farm households in cyclone- and flood-prone regions in eastern India, this study aims to assess the determinants of adaptation diversity. This study finds that the likelihood of undertaking adaptation diversity is high during the ex-post period, and cyclone-affected farmers are likely to adopt a higher number of adaptation measures. Further, size of household, farming experience, per capita income, agriculture as major source of income and crop loss compensation received are some of the important determinants. These findings emphasize the need for investments in scientific modeling for better prediction of extreme events and suggest restructuring the existing institutions to promote several farm-level adaptation measures.

No abstract

No abstract

The damages due to climatic extremes have gone up over the years, particularly in developing nations like India. Disaster-specific risk reduction measures have been adopted at both individual and policy levels to reduce potential impacts. At the same time, a variety of generic adaptation activities have also been undertaken. However, there is inconclusive empirical evidence on the effectiveness of these interventions in reducing damages from climatic extremes, especially for the developing nations. This study, therefore, examines the influence of disasterspecific and generic adaptation measures in reducing the damages resulting from the climate extremes like cyclones and floods in India. A district-level analysis was carried out for the state of Odisha, India from 1999 to 2008 using fixed effects for OLS and negative binomial models. Controlling for the influence of exposure and population, three major findings emerge: (1) households and policy makers have learned from the previous disaster experiences, i.e. there is a 'learning effect', (2) the disaster risk management programme undertaken by the government has reduced the damages from climate extremes, and (3) generic adaptation interventions are helpful. Since the frequency and intensity of these events are likely to increase because of climate change, these results have policy implications in the context of reducing potential impacts now and in the foreseeable future.Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (