Lok Sabha Question No. 5670 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2019-07-26
Subject: Areas Vulnerable to Earthquake
Ministry: EARTH SCIENCES
Asked by: S. Gnanathiraviam

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF EARTH SCIENCES LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION No. 5670

## TO BE ANSWERED ON FRIDAY, JULY 26, 2019

## AREA VULNERABLE TO EARTHQUAKE

5670.          SHRI GNANATHIRAVIAM S.:

Will the Minister of EARTH SCIENCES be pleased to state:

- (a) whether  the  Government  is  aware  that  some  areas  which  are highly vulnerable to earthquakes of moderate intensity, if so, the details thereof;
- (b) whether  the  experts  of  Meteorological  Department  have  been working to study it and its possible repercussions; and
- (c) if so, the findings of the experts in this regard?

## ANSWER MINISTER FOR MINISTRY OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY AND

MINISTRY OF EARTH SCIENCES (DR. HARSH VARDHAN)

- (a) Yes  Sir.  Based  on  various  scientific  inputs  from  a  number  of agencies such as past seismicity, maximum intensities experienced  in  the  past,  geology  and  seismo-tectonics  of  the region,  Bureau of Indian Standards [IS-1893 (Part-1): 2002], has grouped the country into four seismic zones viz. Zone-II, -III, -IV and  -V.  In  this  classification,  Zone  V  is  the  most  seismically active  region  while  zone  II  is  the  least.  The  Modified  Mercalli (MM) intensity, which measures the impact of the earthquakes on the surface of the earth, broadly associated with various zones, is given as follows:

| Seismic Zone                   | Intensity on MM scale   |
|--------------------------------|-------------------------|
| II (Low intensity zone)        | VI (or less)            |
| III (Moderate intensity zone)  | VII                     |
| IV (Severe intensity zone)     | VIII                    |
| V (Very severe intensity zone) | IX (and above)          |

Seismic zonation details for different states of India are written below:

Zone  V:  Jammu  and  Kashmir,  Himachal  Pradesh,  Uttarakhand, Rann  of  Kutch  in  Gujarat,  part  of  North  Bihar  and  Andaman  & Nicobar islands.

Zone IV: remaining parts of Jammu & Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand, Union Territory of Delhi, Sikkim, northern part of  Uttar  Pradesh,  Bihar  and  West  Bengal,  parts  of  Gujarat  and small portions of Maharashtra near the west coast and Rajasthan

Zone III:  Kerala,  Goa,  Lakshadweep  islands,  remaining  parts  of Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat and West  Bengal, parts of Punjab, Rajasthan, Madhya  Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, Chhatisgarh, Maharashtra, Orissa, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Tamilnadu and Karnataka

Zone  II:  Parts  of  Rajasthan,  Madhya  Pradesh  and  Maharashtra, Parts  of  Odisha,  Andhra  Pradesh,  Telangana,  Karnataka  and Kerala

- (b) and (c) National Centre for Seismology (NCS), under the Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES), maintains a national seismological network to monitor  the  earthquake  activity  in  and  around  the  country  and the information is disseminated about the earthquake parameters to all the user agencies and the disaster management  authorities  within  5  minutes  of  the  earthquake occurrence.

Recently,  NCS  has  completed  Seismic  hazard  Microzonation  of Delhi and Kolkata cities and released the reports for the same. Copies of these reports have also been provided to stake holders of  concern State and Central Government authorities to help in urban  planning.  Seismic  Microzonation  of  few  other  areas  like Sikkim, Guwahati, and Bengaluru etc. has also been completed in project mode. Such studies are useful in land use planning and formulation  of  site  specific  design  and  construction  criteria  for the buildings and structures towards minimizing the damage to property and loss of life caused by the earthquakes.

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