Women, Water and Vulnerability

The shocks of climatic disasters in an age of unprecedented rapid urbanisation and development are not spread uniformly, but are disproportionate, making some sections of the population more vulnerable than others. Narrowing down the elusive concept of vulnerability calls for answering the questions: “Who is vulnerable? What are they vulnerable to?”, and invariably leads to the big question, “Why are they vulnerable?”.

A marginalised section of women in Chennai, India, who were once inhabitants of the voids of the city, were pushed to the periphery by river restoration and development projects, as well as resettlement drives that shadowed the Indian Ocean Tsunami (2004) and the unprecedented flood in Chennai (December, 2015). These women now reside in Kannagi Nagar, a settlement of more than 15,000 dwellings, situated on a low-lying marshland deemed unfit for inhabitation and construction, which has now become the case and basis for a Gynocentric Social Vulnerability Framework for Urban Displaced populations and Resettlement sites. By bridging gaps in climate change and Development-induced Displacement and Resettlement (DIDR) literature, the objective of this thesis was to explore which factors explain the varying levels of vulnerability of women who have been resettled or are currently residing in a resettlement colony due to extreme climatic events.

Literature has shown that a city’s robustness is affected by discriminatory social customs that weaken marginalised groups, especially women. Rapid development coupled with the effects of climate change has made the discourse on urban vulnerability and displacement a matter of contention. Urban displacement poses a significant threat to the urban poor in the face of climate change. Besides unsettling livelihoods and the social fabric of communities, the displaced are forced to cope with the inequalities and inadequacies of peri-urban areas, in the milieu of the impending perils of the climate crisis.

A city’s robustness is affected by discriminatory social customs that weaken marginalised groups, especially women

The case of Kannagi Nagar is neither a culmination of unique circumstances nor is it a new phenomenon. Displacement or dislocation is an effect that has repeatedly occurred over centuries, caused by war, disasters and large-scale infrastructure projects. Displacement caused by planned development is usually deliberate, premeditated and, more often than not, results in the population being more vulnerable and impoverished. Followed by a thorough review of literature, the theoretical framework thus developed is a generalisable framework, applicable across similar resettlement sites and adaptable to any climatic event and is called: A Gynocentric Social Vulnerability Framework for Urban Displaced Populations and Resettlement sites.

Social vulnerability and its operationalisation in the framework, adopts the view that the Sustainable Livelihoods Approach takes to vulnerability: a function of the Exposure and the Sensitivity of the women, their homes and livelihoods to climatic disasters, i.e., the potential impact of flooding and drought, in combination with their Adaptive Capacity (as recommended by McCarthy et. al, (2001) and acknowledged by the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). The model takes into account the mediating variable ‘inherent characteristics’ that make women inherently vulnerable to all disasters. These inherent characteristics in combination with their social vulnerability to flooding and drought make for the various levels of social vulnerability displayed by the women. The framework extends Cernea’s Risks and Reconstruction framework and is adapted to 
suit the age of the site and the gendered urban context under the variable ‘Outcomes of Resettlement’. This variable includes the income and employment outcomes, health outcomes, as well as the location outcomes (access to community assets and services) of urban resettlement sites and takes into account the quality of the built environment.

The significance of ‘the context’ is a recurrent feature in the scientific literature of today, as well as in this study. Chennai’s propensity to extreme water events is evident in the repeated depressions and cyclonic storms, resulting in flooding. On the other hand, it has had its fair share of dry spells, with the city facing extreme water scarcity during the summer months. June 19, 2019 was declared as Day-Zero by city officials in Chennai: all major reservoirs had run dry. The following month, a total of 150 women were surveyed leading to a snowball of purposeful samples of semi-structured interviews and focus-group discussions with the women residents. Applying this framework to the case of Kannagi Nagar revealed what makes these settlements and their populations vulnerable to extreme water events. The unavailability of employment and services, compounded by the lack of foresight and planning in the construction of the housing colony exacerbated their vulnerability to water scarcity.

The site of Kannagi Nagar lacked the convenience and security of employment nearby, something the slums in the city had given them. The site’s propensity to flooding and water stagnation, the quality and quantity of water provided to the settlement and the absence of economical, specialised healthcare led to the deterioration and neglect of the community’s health. However, Kannagi Nagar is a 20-year-old resettlement site that has now been absorbed into city limits. While the inadequacies of housing and infrastructure and the struggles of the women and their families persist, the colony has come a long way. The relatively newer sites of Perumbakkam and Semmenchery in Chennai face worse predicaments. While the study did not cover younger sites, recommendations have been made to accommodate the age of resettlement sites.

The women of Kannagi Nagar, specifically, are caught in a feedback loop of the negative outcomes of resettlement exacerbating their socio-economic vulnerabilities. The woman’s position and role in society, as well as in her household, made a significant difference to their vulnerability. “For me it has been very difficult. I work in two houses in Thiruvanmayur (8.3 kms away). I could be spending the time I take to travel, with my kids or doing housework. Also, I am almost always at work when they supply water at the pumps and even if I leave early from there… by the time I am home the taps have run dry,” says Sita, 37, mother of two who lives with her husband’s parents. Her story is an example of how women are affected when the planning of a settlement favours commuting over childcare and disregards the woman’s point of view. This study is an attempt at including the untold female perspective. Since the pandemic, the residents of colonies like Kannagi Nagar are now regarded ‘essential workers’, and it’s high time cities let them know how essential they are.

All drawings/illustration: Ishita Vedamuthu