landslide hazard zones Of India

Landslide hazard zoning of India

Landslide, a frequently occurring natural hazard in the hilly terrains of India, shows preponderance of activity during the monsoon period from July to September and after the snow fall from January to March. The strong earthquakes also cause triggering of landslide, particularly in regions marked by critically disposed and unstable slopes. On a rough estimate, nearly 15% of India’s landmass or 0.49 million sq km area is prone to landslide hazard. This includes 0.098 million sq km of the North Eastern Region, comprising the Arakan Yoma ranges, and 0.392 million sq km of parts of the Himalaya, Nilgiri, Ranchi Plateau and Eastern & Western Ghats. As many as 20 States of India are affected by different degrees of landslide hazard. Of these, the States of Sikkim and Mizoram have been assessed to be falling under very high to severe hazard classes. Most of the districts of the States of Jammu & Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland and Manipur come under high to very high landslide hazard classes. In the Peninsular Region, the hilly tracts of States like Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Goa, Madhya Pradesh and Kerala constitute low to moderate hazard prone zones.