India, Aug. 5 -- Eight years on from the deadly 2018 floods, Kerala has been deluged again. This time, experts Down To Earth spoke to say the mathematics of floods in the state has changed drastically.

Kerala has made significant progress in disaster response since the catastrophic floods of 2018. Early warning systems have improved, rescue agencies are better coordinated, and communities have become more aware of flood risks.

Yet every successive monsoon demonstrates that disaster response alone cannot compensate for decades of ecological degradation and unsustainable land use.

Deluged again

Over the past four days, torrential rain has battered almost the entire state, from the northern districts bordering Karnataka to the below-sea-...