PARLIAMENT QUESTION: MAPPING OF LANDSLIDE PRONE AREAS

Ministry of Earth Sciences PARLIAMENT QUESTION: MAPPING OF LANDSLIDE PRONE AREAS Posted On: 20 AUG 2025 4:42PM by PIB Delhi Being the nodal agency for landslide studies, Geological Survey of India (GSI) has completed the landslide susceptibility mapping under the National Landslide Susceptibility Mapping (NLSM) programme on 1: 50,000 scale for the entire landslide prone hilly/ mountainous areas of the country including the Himalayan region, the Tertiary Belt of North-eastern India and Western Ghats, spreading over parts of 19 states/ UTs covering an area of about 4.3 lakh sq. km. areas. The landslide susceptibility maps show the total area classified into high, moderate and low zones based on their relative likelihood of susceptibility to landslide initiation, and can be used as a vital geo-information tool for regional land-use planning in landslide prone fragile slopes. GSI also collected information on 91,000 historical landslides using both remote sensing (RS) and field-based source data. A total number of 33,904 landslides are field validated and the database is continuously being updated with the new landslide data collected year-wise as part of post-disaster studies. The landslide susceptibility map and the landslide inventory generated are uploaded in the GSI’s National Geoscience Data Repository (NGDR) and Bhukosh map portal for free download by all the stakeholders. This is also available for viewing in GSI’s Bhusanket portal as well as Bhooskhalan mobile app. Building on the NLSM baseline, GSI has upscaled into meso-scale (1:10,000/1:5,000) landslide susceptibility mapping. This initiative focuses on completing 200 critical sectors identified through NLSM and state government consultations by 2028. By the end of field season 2024-25, GSI has completed work on meso scale (1:10,000) in 160 critical sectors/ localities. These high-resolution maps support planning in vulnerable hill regions, allowing for more informed decisions in infrastructure development, even aiding in implementing zoning regulations and ensuring community safety. In addition, GSI has carried out a number of post-disaster landslide studies as well as detailed site-specific landslide investigations on 1:1000/2000 scale to suggest suitable remedial measures for landslides and unstable slopes. During last five years (2019-2024), GSI has carried out 45 detailed site-specific investigations of the chronic landslides across the country. The entire landslide prone areas of the country have been categorized based on the landslide susceptibility status. The state-wise details of landslide susceptibility status are provided in the table given below: area in 1000 sq. Km. Modera Modera State Low Low % High High % te te % Andhra Pradesh 1 48 1 46 0 6 Arunachal Pradesh 33 47 27 38 10 15 Assam 21 87 3 11 1 2 Goa 3 71 1 26 0 3 Himachal Pradesh 17 41 12 30 12 29 Jammu & Kashmir 19 65 7 23 3 12 (UT) Karnataka 26 82 4 14 1 4Kerala 10 52 7 35 3 13 Ladakh (UT) 17 42 15 37 8 21 Maharashtra 15 53 12 41 2 6 Manipur 13 54 7 28 4 18 Meghalaya 20 90 2 9 0 1 Mizoram 13 59 6 25 4 16 Nagaland 8 48 5 31 4 21 Sikkim 2 40 2 42 1 18 Tamil Nadu 8 75 2 19 1 6 Tripura 1 93 0 5 0 2 Uttarakhand 18 46 12 32 9 22 West Bengal 1 42 1 41 1 17 Total 245 56 126 29 63 15 Considering the growing frequency of natural calamities including landslides, GSI is actively involved in developing Regional Landslide Forecasting System (RLFS) for landslide prone areas of the country in phased manner since 2020. This forecasting system is built on probabilistic rainfall thresholds, Numerical Weather Prediction (NWP) models and observed rainfall data for timely forecast/ warnings for rainfall induced landslides. For this purpose, GSI has collaborated with Indian Meteorological Department (IMD), National Centre for Medium Range Weather Forecasting (NCMRWF), National Remote Sensing Centre (NRSC) of ISRO and all concerned State Disaster Management Authorities (SDMAs) for data integration, forecasting and model validation. In line with this effort, GSI, as part of the multi consortium LANDSLIP project, developed a prototype regional Landslide Early Warning System (LEWS) for India. Since 2025 monsoon, GSI has been providing operational and experimental landslide forecast bulletins for 21 districts in eight states. The State-wise details of districts where forecast bulletins are being issued during 2025 (both experimental and operational) are as follows: State (No. of Districts) District Name (s) Operational forecast and ground testing West Bengal (02) Darjeeling, Kalimpong Tamil Nadu (01) Nilgiris Experimental forecast for ground testing (shared with SDMAS & DDMAs for testing purpose only) Sikkim (06) Soreng, Pakyong, Mangan, Gyalshing, Gangtok, Namchi Kerala (02) Wayanad, Idukki Karnataka (01) Kodagu Uttarakhand (04) Rudraprayag, Chamoli, Uttarkashi, Tehri Garhwal Himachal Pradesh (02) Shimla, Kinnaur Nagaland (03) Peren, Dimapur, Kohima The Government of India does provide special assistance to states with high-risk landslide-prone areas. Thisincludes financial support through the National Landslide Risk Mitigation Programme and the Aapda Mitra scheme implemented by the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), trains community volunteers in disaster response. It aims to equip volunteers with the skills to address immediate community needs after a disaster, focusing on disaster prone areas. The scheme is a central sector scheme, meaning it's fully funded by the central government. This information was given by Dr. Jitendra Singh, Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Science and Technology, Earth Sciences, MoS PMO, MoS Personnel, Public Grievances & Pensions, Department of Atomic Energy and Department of Space, in a written reply in the Lok Sabha today. ***** NKR/PSM/AV (Release ID: 2158420)