Building resilient river basins: a new paradigm with the catchment risk and resilience (CRI) index in India

The Catchment Risk and Resilience Index (CRI) offers an integrated, science-based framework to assess and manage vulnerabilities across river basins in the context of climate change, land-use transformation, and growing water stress in India. By systematically combining indicators of risk—such as exposure to floods, droughts, erosion, pollution, and socio-economic pressures—with indicators of ecological, infrastructural, and social resilience, the CRI provides a comprehensive, spatially explicit assessment of catchment health. Application of the CRI in the Godavari Basin demonstrates its capacity to identify priority hotspots where high risk converges with low resilience, enabling targeted, evidence-driven interventions. Developed in alignment with the International Water Management Institute’s (IWMI) strategy on integrated water resource management, the CRI is supported through collaborations with the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) under the INTEGRATE project and CGIAR Climate Action Program, with a focus on strengthening agricultural resilience and sustainable basin-scale development. The framework supports informed decision-making by linking ecosystem services, spatial planning, and socio-economic dynamics, while fostering dialogue among policymakers, scientists, and local stakeholders. By balancing risk reduction with resilience enhancement, the CRI serves as a practical decision-support tool to guide climate adaptation, watershed investments, and inclusive development pathways. Scaling the CRI across river basins can contribute significantly to resilient, adaptive, and sustainable water and land management in India.