India ranks 77 on the World Risk Index.
The index is part of the World Risk Report 2016 released by the United Nations University Institute for Environment and Human Security (UNU-EHS) and Bundnis Entwicklung Hilft in cooperation with the University of Stuttgart in Germany.
The index assessed the risk of disaster in 171 countries through the combined analysis of natural hazards and societal vulnerabilities.
Ranking No.1, the island state of Vanuatu displayed the greatest risk in 2016.
The researchers concluded in the report that lack of critical infrastructure and weak logistic chains substantially increase the risk that an extreme natural event will become a disaster.
At the very top of the list are Pacific island nations. Vanuatu(1) and Tonga(2) are at risk of earthquakes, tsunamis and storms while the Philippines(3) must also deal with volcanic eruptions and landslides.
Residents of Qatar(171) and Malta(170) are at the least risk of natural disaster while Germany is ranked 147th. Pakistan is placed at 72.
Listed in 17th place, Japan is ranked highest of all highly developed nations.
The Netherlands is on 49th place. Protected by dikes, much of the country is located below sea level and climbing sea levels present a growing threat.
Chile, in 22nd place, and Serbia, at 68, are also highly ranked despite their relative prosperity. Greece, in 76th place, is primarily threatened by earthquakes and tsunamis.
The index only considers risks associated with natural disasters and a country’s ability to cope with natural events like earthquakes and flooding. That is why countries like Saudi Arabia (third best at 169th) and Egypt (158) have a better ranking than Switzerland (155), Austria (135) or Britain (131).
