IUCN partners with Assam University to strengthen Nature-based Solutions (NbS) across two districts in India

IUCN and the Department of Ecology, Assam University, jointly convened the 1st Expert Group Consultation on NbS Strategy for the Climate Resilient Development of Cachar and Sribhumi (earstwhile Karimganj) districts of Assam, India. The consultation, held in Silchar on 04 March 2025, included representatives from district and state level government agencies and partners who will be engaged in the series of dialogue and data analysis for the development of an NbS Strategy for the two districts. 

The "Climate Risk Assessment for India: Mapping Flood and Drought Risks Using IPCC Framework", recently published by the Department of Science and Technology (DST), classifies Cachar and Sribhumi among the most vulnerable to flood and drought risks. Similar study on the climate change impacts assessment at the basin level, jointly conducted by North-Eastern Hill University (NEHU) Shillong and IUCN, also identified these two districts as the most impacted by climate change in the Barak River basin. The main factors contributing to climate vulnerability include high population growth, low development levels, and the conversion of forests, wetlands, and riverbanks into other land-uses (urban, industrial, or agricultural). 

NbS – actions to protect and restore natural or modified ecosystems to solve societal challenges while contributing to biodiversity gains – is gaining recognition among governments, the private sector, and researchers as a proven approach for addressing societal challenges, including climate change impacts. In 2024, the government of Assam launched an initiative to restore 129 beels (wetlands) across 3,800 hectares to enhance flood resilience and increase fish production. 

During the technical session, Ms Anushri Tiwari and Ms Brinda Kashyap, members of the Youth for Meghna (Y4M) network, presented a mapping of policies that promote NbS. These include the National Water Mission (NWM) that is promoting the scheme on repair, renovation, and restoration (RRR) of water bodies to reduce climate change impacts; and the Amrit Darohar Scheme, launched in 2023, designed to enhance the protection and optimal use of wetlands, including through development of nature tourism and income generation opportunities for local communities. The consultations highlighted the need for the NbS strategy to align with these policies. 

During the consultation, Dr Parthankar Choudhury, Professor & Dean, E.P Odum School of Ecology and Environmental Sciences, Assam University, Silchar, emphasised the role of wetlands and forests as natural buffers to floods and droughts. He further highlighted their role in developing climate resilient livelihoods opportunities through the provision of food and recreational activities. 

Mr Sankar Das, DGM, National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD), Guwahati Office, shared that their Livelihood and Enterprise Development Programme scheme is promoting climate resilience through capacity building of Self-help Groups on enterprise development. Similarly, the Chief Minister's Climate Resilient Village Fellowship Program of Assam is funding short-term research to support the development of climate-resilient strategies tailored to specific village contexts and its needs. These initiatives could be leveraged for the design and implementation of the proposed NbS strategy.

This consultation brought together 28 participants including state and district level project managers from Assam Water Resources, Agriculture, Fisheries, Science and Technology and Disaster Management departments, as well as financial and academic sector experts from National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD), North-Eastern Space Applications Centre (NESAC) and Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Guwahati.

Participants acknowledged the importance of bringing different government agencies together to develop a common understanding of issues and develop a joint vision to tackle these through NbS. They concluded that the strategy document should analyse policy differences and identify priority actions needed to build convergence between different agencies working at the district and state level, as well as role and benefits for local communities. They outlined the strategy’s methodology as well as the data collection approach and agreed to prioritise flood resilience as the main challenge to tackle. As a next step following Silchar consultation, the expert group will continue to provide technical guidance and validation of key outputs of the strategy.

The proposed NbS strategy is being developed as a part of IUCN BRIDGE GBM initiative, jointly with Assam University, Silchar and supported by Y4M network and IUCN partners, North-East Affected Area Development Society (NEADS) and Stockholm Environment Institute (SEI). The initiative is funded by Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) and Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (SIDA). The final draft of strategy is expected in early 2026.