Context

India was ‘poorly prepared’ to deal with ‘climate reality’, due to which it was more vulnerable to extreme natural disasters, according to the World Risk Index (WRI) 2020.

About

What is World Risk Index?

• The WRI is part of the World Risk Report 2020 released by the United Nations University Institute for Environment and Human Security (UNU-EHS) and Bundnis Entwicklung Hilft, in cooperation with the University of Stuttgart in Germany.
• The WRI is calculated on a country-by-country basis, through the multiplication of exposure and vulnerability.
• The WRI, released annually since 2011, indicates which countries are in the greatest need to strengthen measures for coping with and adapting to extreme natural events.

Key-takeaways from the Report

• India ranked 89th among 181 countries. The country was fourth-most-at- risk in south Asia on the index, after Bangladesh, Afghanistan and Pakistan.
• Sri Lanka, Bhutan and the Maldives fared better than India in their abilities to cope with extreme disasters.
• India also lagged behind these three neighbours in terms of lack of adaptive capacities or the preparedness to deal with extreme events.
• India and other south Asian nations did improve their ranking marginally in the World Risk Index during the course of a year. Bhutan improved its ranking the most, followed by Pakistan.

Country	Global rank in World Risk Index 2020	Global rank in World Risk Index  2019
Afghanistan	57	53
Bangladesh	13	10
Bhutan	152	143
India	89	85
Maldives	171	169
Nepal	121	116
Pakistan	87	80
Sri Lanka	74	73

Significance of the Index

• Raising awareness: The Index shows the level of risk for each country and provides a global overview. It is an important tool for communication and awareness raising.
• Focus on society’s capacity: It underscores that risks are heavily determined by the susceptibility and the coping as well as the adaptive capacity of a society.