Keynote Session:

Title:           Natural disasters of Indian sub-continent and emergency preparedness plan - a typical analysis
Authors:       D. Venkat Reddy
Abstract:      Natural Disaster has received substantial attention from the scientific community in recent past. It has also provoked policy makers to think about it. Natural disasters have conquered much of scientific and political debate on global level due to it overall impact. India has been traditionally vulnerable to natural disasters on account of its unique geo-climatic conditions. Floods, droughts, cyclones, earthquakes and landslides have been recurrent phenomena. About 60% of the landmass is prone to earthquakes of various intensities; over 40 million hectares is prone to floods; about 8% of the total area is prone to cyclones and 68% of the area is susceptible to drought. India has the highest mountain chain on earth, the Himalayas, which are formed due to collision of Indian and Eurasian plate, the northward movement of the Indian plate towards China causes continuous stress on the rocks rendering them friable, weak and prone to landslides and earthquakes, Fast moving flows of mud and rock, called debris flows or mudslides are among the most numerous and dangerous types of landslides in the world. They are particularly dangerous to life and property because of their high speeds and the sheer destructive force of their flow. About 40 million hectares or nearly 1/8th of India’s geographical area is floodprone. The Kosi River (The Sorrow of Bihar) is well-known in India for rapid and frequent avulsions of its course and the extensive flood damages it causes almost every year. The Kosi is one of the major tributaries of the Ganga River, and rises in the Nepal Himalayas. Among the various natural disaster/hazards that our planet earth is subjected to, an earthquake happens to be the most devastating natural impact, resulting in heavy loss of human life and material. India is unique as far as earthquakes are concerned. The latest version of seismic zoning map of India given in the earthquake resistant design code of India [IS 1893 (Part 1) 2002] assigns four levels of seismicity for India in terms of zone factors. In other words, the earthquake zoning map of India divides India into 4 seismic zones. India has long coast line of nearly 7,500 km along which several million people live and are engaged in various activities. The Indian coastline may be divided into east coast and west coast. Geological evidence of ancient marine sediments on land reveals that the continents of the world were once submerged beneath the sea. The continental seas and coastlines of the world have fluctuated greatly in the past, time after time the marginal seas grew and shrank over a period of million years .Rock recordsstratigraphic evidence show that the magnitude of these marine floods was greater in earth’s earlier history than in more recent times. Integrated coastal zone management involves prevention of marine eco-system-protection from erosion, tides, cyclones, tsunamis and maintains the coastal resources and meets the needs of present and future generation. Emergency preparedness plans and effective management of natural disasters of Indian –subcontinent must be prepared with micro-level geological geomorphological--seismological-meteorological, hydrological, studies.

Keywords:   Natural disasters, landslides, debris flows ,floods ,droughts ,earthquakes and tsunamis
Pages:          031-046

Download Full Paper