NLFC is aimed at landslide hazard mitigation in India and will in due course issue early warning bulletins for all landslide-prone states, operationalizing the regional Landslide Early Warning System (LEWS) nationwide by 2030.
Other Initiatives
- Bhusanket Web Portal: Will facilitate dissemination of relevant information on landslide hazards, initiating short-range and medium-range landslide forecasting.
- Bhooskhalan Mobile App: Quick dissemination of daily landslide forecasts.
About Landslides
- Landslides, a type of mass wasting, is defined as the rapid movement of a mass of rock, debris, or earth down a slope.
- India’s Vulnerability: Approximately 0.42 million sq. km (12.6% of land area), excluding snow covered area, is prone to landslide hazard.
- Himalayas and Western Ghats are particularly susceptible to landslides due to hilly topography and heavy rainfall.
- Causes of landslides
- Natural: Heavy rainfall, undercutting of slopes due to flooding or excavation, earthquakes, snowmelt etc.
- Anthropogenic: Overgrazing by cattle, soil erosion due to loss of vegetation, terrain cutting and filling, excessive development etc.
- Effects of landslides:
- Loss of life and infrastructure, cultivable land etc.
- Disruption of traffic and isolation of habitations in hilly regions.
- Floods due to diversion of river courses, channel blockages or reducing effectiveness of dams by adding silt load.
Components of National Landslide Risk Management Strategy (2019)
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