Environmental Displacement in Sindh:A Case Study of 2022 Flood in District Khairpur

Abstract

Climate-induced migration has become a very serious challenge faced by Pakistan, particularly the 2022 rain-floods that displaced millions of people, destroyed household and infrastructure. This paper explores the patterns and impacts of 2022 rain-floods on migration in district Khairpur, a badly affected district from the floods across the Sindh province, where more than 0.6 million of people emerged in the circle of temporary displaced persons (TDPs). This study determines the following three methods of migration: First rural to rural, which was the highest number of 43%, second, rural to urban, that recorded 37% and third was inter-district that was only 4% of total migration. Thus, this research discovers that 36% of affected people migrated semi-permanently in urban areas of Khairpur, that may cause the increasing 16% of informal residents and burdened on the district infrastructure, health and education. It furthermore investigates how government and NGOs responded to the affected households and rescued them from such natural catastrophes. This study also emphasizes the immediate actions taken by the government to prevent such climate-calamity and its impacts on migration to maintain the rural and urban life of small cities like Khairpur.