The island of Majuli in the Indian state of Assam has in the last six decades seen rapid loss of fisheries and agricultural land because of riverbank erosion in the River Brahmaputra. This has affected the livelihood of a large proportion of the island’s population. However, the disaster management law in India does not recognise a slow-onset disaster like riverbank erosion as a hazard, and therefore, there is no existing mechanism under which the government can help in disaster management in Majuli. In the absence of any legal framework for disaster risk reduction in Majuli and to cope with this loss of resources; the government, civil society institutions, and local citizens of Majuli need to work together to increase the resilience of the society. The present paper will study the socio-ecological system (SES) of Majuli and will explore ways in which all stakeholders can re-examine their roles and responsibilities in the changing socio-environmental conditions of Majuli. The paper will use the Institutional Analysis and Development (IAD) framework as described by Elinor Ostrom, to examine the relationship between resource, resource users and governance systems, and to formulate a model of disaster risk reduction and resource management in the island. The Ostrom framework provides an approach to assess the social and ecological dimensions that contribute to sustainable resource management. At the same time, by studying the rights and responsibilities of the government, the private sector, the voluntary organisations (NGOs and civil society), and the individuals; the paper will generate new knowledge to support disaster risk reduction in areas affected by slow-onset disasters.
Mots clés : Majuli Island|Riverbank Erosion|Sustainable Resource Management|Social-Ecological Systems|Ostrom Framework
A103147AS