ABSTRACT
The paper examines how river erosion, locally known as Katav, in Gandak River affects the lives and livelihood of people, especially the Musahar community in the Gangetic Plain in Bihar, India. Due to excessive siltation of the river bed, its drainage capacity and channels get disturbed, which makes difficult for the river to maintain its equilibrium flow. It forces the river to find a new course, causing recurrent floods to accommodate the excess drainage. Exploring the context of Katav, based on the lived experiences of Musahars and their multiple displacements, the paper analyses the vicious cycle of vulnerability in the disaster context. Recognising the primacy of victims’ narratives of their experience of recurrent floods, Katav and multiple displacements, the study uses a qualitative phenomenological paradigm in the life-world’ of the Musahars, by entering into the field of their perceptions and experiences. It draws attention on the need for a specific context-based approach in the implementation of Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) and Disaster Risk Management (DRM) programmes. Further, it suggests what is required for long-term resilience at community level beyond an academic exercise, and discusses the Post-Disaster Transformative Framework’ that has emerged from the study.
