Biological loss under natural disasters and their possible mitigation plans in marine environment along the Bay of Bengal

Abstract

Numerable natural disasters, including mass-scale-die-off and cyclonic events, ravaged the east coast of the Indian subcontinent along the Bay of Bengal (BOB). It resulted in the destruction of the critical flora and fauna and human life as well. Over the past 50 years, the tropical cyclones along the BOB coast have resulted in approximately 779,324 casualties and along with staggering economic losses amounting to 1.4 trillion USD. The increasing trend of urbanisation, global warming, overfishing, and critical fluctuation in the climatic conditions has led to the occurrence of more cyclones over the past few decades. Various species such as whales, turtles, finfishes, jellyfishes, dolphins, etc., face the eco-climatic challenges, including a rise in temperature and cyclones, leading to individual or mass-scale-die-off events along the BOB. Hence, various sustainable mitigation strategies are required to reduce the occurrence of these cyclones. This review was undertaken to have a perspective on management and monitoring strategies to save human life, agricultural land, and the rich flora and fauna along the eastern coast of India.