Building resilience in the Sundarbans through partnership and nature

When Cyclone Amphan struck the Indian Sundarbans in 2020, around 700 breaches occured in the flood protection system. For the more than 5.2 million people living in this vast delta, the consequences went far beyond flooded homes. Saltwater inundated farmland, damaged livelihoods and highlighted the growing vulnerability of one of the world’s most dynamic coastal landscapes. Rather than simply strengthening embankments, the project set out to understand why they fail in the first place.

Supported by Partners for Water, Haskoning and Deltares worked closely with the Irrigation and Waterways Department of the Government of West Bengal to help develop a more resilient approach to flood protection. Instead of delivering ready-made Dutch solutions, the project focused on knowledge exchange, combining Dutch experience in flood risk management with Indian engineering expertise and local knowledge.

Looking beyond the embankment

At first glance, the Sundarbans and the Netherlands appear to face similar challenges. Both are densely populated delta regions where millions of people rely on flood defences for their safety.

But that’s where the similarities end. “The challenge is much more dynamic in the Sundarbans,” says Dr Jasper Leuven, Nature-based Solutions specialist at Haskoning. “Tidal ranges can reach seven metres, tropical cyclones generate waves of more than five metres and the coastline is constantly changing because of erosion. Every location requires a different solution.”

While the construction methodology for embankments can certainly be improved, the challenge extends beyond the embankments themselves. Successful flood protection starts with understanding the wider delta system. Shoreline dynamics, tidal flows, sediment transport and foreshore stability largely determine whether an embankment can perform over the long term. Rather than applying standard engineering solutions, flood protection measures should be tailored to local conditions and based on a thorough understanding of these underlying processes.

“In many places there wasn’t enough understanding of the system,” Leuven explains. “Without insight into tidal flows, erosion, sediment transport and the condition of the foreshore, you’re effectively building infrastructure without knowing whether the landscape can support it. That, while the investments can be very high.”

That shift in perspective became one of the project’s most important outcomes. The project helped shift flood protection from reacting to embankment failures after cyclones towards proactive inspection, monitoring, maintenance and risk-based investment planning.

Working with nature instead of against it

One of the project’s central themes was the use of more Nature-based Solutions.

Instead of relying solely on grey infrastructure, the team explored hybrid flood protection systems that combine embankments with natural coastal features such as mangrove forests. Mangroves reduce wave energy, trap sediment and help stabilise coastlines where suitable hydraulic and morphological conditions exist. In locations where these natural buffers remain intact, embankments experience considerably less stress. Conversely, areas where deep tidal channels lie directly against an embankment often experience rapid erosion, making long-term protection extremely difficult.

“The first question shouldn’t be how to strengthen the dike,” Leuven says. “It should be whether the surrounding landscape is stable enough to support one.”

This approach also helps prevent costly investments in infrastructure that may fail after only a few years. Where erosion is too severe, restoring the coastal system may be a better first step than constructing a new embankment.

Adopting this approach makes even grey solutions more nature-based. “It is not just whether the solution is more green, but also a question of whether the solution fits the natural system.”

Learning from each other

While Dutch expertise and professional approaches played an important role, the project was not shaped as a one-way transfer of knowledge.

The Dutch team contributed experience in flood risk management, asset management and integrated delta planning. Their Indian counterparts brought detailed knowledge of local rivers, tides, soils, construction practices and institutional realities.

Just as valuable was the knowledge of local communities. During field visits, fishermen and residents explained how coastlines had changed over decades and described where mangrove forests once protected vulnerable shores. In several locations, these observations helped explain patterns of erosion that were not captured in available data.

“Mostly local people understand the system better than anyone,” Leuven says. “They lived in the area for decades and crossed the same tidal flat every day for their daily fishing activities. This helps in understanding, especially in places where long-term monitoring data are limited.”

Those conversations also demonstrated that flood protection is not only an engineering challenge but also a social one. Decisions about relocating embankments, restoring mangroves or creating bufferzones directly affect people’s land and livelihoods. Successful solutions therefore require dialogue with local communities and other stakeholders as much as technical expertise.

A different way of international cooperation

According to Fernanda van der Velde of Partners for Water, this collaborative approach distinguishes the project from more traditional consultancy assignments.

Rather than producing designs for a client, the project supported engineers within the Government of West Bengal in strengthening their own capacity over several years. Together they developed practical guidance on embankment design, inspection, monitoring, maintenance and risk management, while continuously adapting the programme to local priorities.

That flexibility proved essential. Government leadership changed several times during the project, priorities shifted and new locations were added. Instead of following a fixed plan, the partners adjusted their approach whenever necessary.

“The project was genuinely demand-driven,” Van der Velde explains. “The focus was always on the questions our Indian partners wanted to address and on strengthening their own capacity to continue the work.”

For Leuven, the experience also challenged some familiar Dutch assumptions. “As Dutch engineers we’re often direct and we like to move quickly,” he says. “Projects like this teach you that adapting to your partner’s pace and working style ultimately creates more impact than insisting on your own way of working.”

Building a foundation for the future

The technical assistance from Partners for Water to the Indian Government has now reached its conclusion, but its influence is expected to continue.

The methods developed during the collaboration provide the Government of West Bengal with practical guidance on embankment inspection, monitoring, maintenance and risk-based investment planning. They are intended to support future flood protection programmes, including larger initiatives that may be financed by organisations such as the World Bank or the Asian Development Bank.

More broadly, the project demonstrates how long-term partnerships can strengthen climate resilience without simply exporting technical solutions from one country to another.

The recent state visit of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to the Netherlands, including a visit to the Afsluitdijk, highlighted the growing importance both countries attach to water management. The Sundarbans project shows what that cooperation can look like in practice: not a transfer of knowledge in one direction, but a partnership in which expertise, local experience and shared learning come together to create better solutions.