Labour & Natural Disaster: A Pilot Study on the Impact of the Earthquake on the Most Vulnerable Sections of Workers in Surendranagar District, Gujarat

[Informalisation and Labour Rights - Study Reports]

Gujarat is one of the states in India that are frequently affected by calamities and disasters. One or the other natural calamity hit the state constantly for a period of four years, extending from 1998 to 2001. In 1998, it was hit by a cyclone that was followed by heavy rains, and subsequently by floods. It was hit again by a cyclone in 1999, which was also followed by heavy rains. For two consecutive years (1999-2000 and 2000-01), the state experienced droughts. In January 2001, the devastating earthquake struck Gujarat while it had not yet recovered from the droughts. This particular study assesses the extent of destruction caused by the earthquake on the livelihood systems of the most vulnerable sections of workers in Surendranagar, one of the severely affected districts in the 2001-earthquake in Gujarat. It also reviews the extent to which they had been rehabilitated after the earthquake and proposes policy changes and strategies for rebuilding their livelihood systems.