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Resilience and mental health impacts of natural disasters in India

While an event like a cyclone could serve as a catalyst for the occurrence of a disaster, the precise roots of mental health
problems lie in the socially induced vulnerability associated with places and populations. In addition to the public health
and medical consequences of these disasters, the social, cultural, and psychological impact of cyclones and tsunamis have
an enormous and long-lasting impact throughout the world and a direct effect upon human development in general. The
impact of gender, caste, socioeconomic status, and social network was apparent at virtually every stage of cyclone “Thane”
in Puducherry, showing the salience of inequality and differential vulnerability in society (Parida, 2014). Cyclones have
had a grave impact on water, sanitation, and health. Displaced people have a higher likelihood of suffering under outbreaks
of waterborne and flood-borne diseases along with mental shocks (Chhotray and Few, 2012; Bhunia and Ghosh, 2011).
A growing body of research has pointed to linkages between mental health and environmental stressors exacerbated
by climate change, including tropical cyclones. A study conducted 1 year after the super cyclone in India in 1999, found
that a large number of children had post-traumatic symptoms. Another study showed that about 80.4% people had a
probable psychiatric disorder, while 57.5% people had an anxiety disorder, and 52.7% had depression (Kar, Mohapatra,
Nayak, et al., 2007). Cases of anxiety and abnormal behavior patterns were also reported (Patra, Tripathy, and Jena, 2013).
After cyclone Thane, a number of people were uprooted from their homes and lost their livelihoods in Puducherry, India.
They experienced trauma, acute anxiety, depression, and suicidal thoughts (Parida, 2014).
In fact, acceptance of the existence of psychological impacts of natural disasters and the need for focused services for
the survivors became much clearer only after the cyclone. A study done more than 4 years after the tsunami struck India in
2004 showed the continued prevalence of psychiatric morbidity among a high percentage of survivors (Kar, Krishnaraaj,
and Rameshraj, 2013). In the wake of the 2004 tsunami, some of the problems faced by children in India included
sleep disorder and separation anxiety from parents, anxiety, and helplessness. Adults had to grapple with hypervigilance,
hyperarousal, depersonalization, and panic attacks (Becker, 2007). The review of some of the qualitative studies reveals
that the mental health of people is severely affected in the event of disasters alongside the destruction of livelihoods and
agriculture. Many people were in mental trauma or grappled with post-traumatic disorders after the 1999 cyclone, some
people were not even able to recognize their family members (Patel, 2018c).

3.5. Earthquakes and Mental Health
Earthquakes are the deadliest natural disasters worldwide. In the period between 1994 and 2013, earthquakes accounted for
55% of total deaths caused by natural disasters, more lives were lost in earthquakes than from any other natural hazard, and
earthquakes were the third most frequently occurring disasters in this period. Studies have highlighted the economic damages
(Cavallo, Powell, and Becerra, 2010) and infrastructural damages caused by earthquakes (Parker and Steenkamp, 2012;
Kobayashi, 2014). Large-scale seismic damage was caused to engineering infrastructure, and structural damage was caused to
non-engineered reinforced concrete buildings due to the earthquake in Sumatra in 2005; main arteries and small streets were
destroyed, thereby affecting the transportation system and hindering relief efforts (Saatcioglu, Ghobarah, and Nistor, 2005).
Earthquakes, as a natural disaster, not only causes deaths, physical disease, damage to infrastructure, and economic
loss, they also have long-lasting mental health effects on individuals involved. A study highlighted that older people
had higher levels of post-traumatic stress symptoms after an earthquake (Ticehurst, Webster, Carr, et al., 1996). As per
the Government of Nepal (2018), half of the people reported physiological stress on the day of the earthquake in Nepal,
and far more women had psychosocial problems than men. About 40% of consultations in the aftermath of the 2005
earthquake in Pakistan were for trauma. PTSD, anxiety, and depression were prevalent among people 8 weeks after
being affected by the earthquake in Thailand (Griensven, Chakkraband, Thienkrua, et al., 2006). About 58% people had
severe mental health issues after the Bam earthquake in Iran in 2003, which was thrice the psychological distress in the
general population (Montazeri, Baradaran, Omidvari, et al., 2005). A study showed that the middle-age group was more
psychologically vulnerable and had a poorer capacity to cope with the earthquake in China due to their responsibility
toward their family (Xu and He, 2012). A number of survivors of the earthquake in Wenchuan reported high levels of
PTSD, anxiety, and depression. The prevalence rates of probable PTSD, anxiety, and depression were 26.3%, 49.8%, and
49.6%, respectively (Zhang, Shi, Wang, et al., 2011).
There are very few studies which capture the adverse effects of earthquakes on mental health in India. Mental health
problems were seen among people in Andaman and Nicobar Islands following the earthquake and tsunami that struck
the Indian subcontinent in 2004. The study also showed that people suffered from depression, adjustment disorders,
anxiety disorder, panic disorder, and PTSD and that displaced survivors had higher levels of psychiatric morbidity than
non-displaced people. Following the early phase of the disaster, 5-8% of the population were suffering from significant
mental health problems which were expected to increase in the aftermath of the early relief phase. Psychiatric morbidity
is expected be around 25-30% in the disillusionment phase (Math, Girimaji, Benegal, et al., 2006).

88 International Journal of Population Studies | 2020, Volume 6, Issue 1