earthquake risk in indian cities

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  • 7/24/2019 Earthquake Risk in Indian Cities

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    op metros like Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai and Kolkata fall under moderate to high risk seismic zones of the country, the National Disaster Management Authority has

    aid.

    !arth"uake is a ma#or issue of concern. $%er &'.( per cent of land in )ndia is highly %ulnerable to earth"uakes and *' cities fall under moderate to high risk seismic

    ones,+ NDMA ice Chairman -hashidhar eddy toldPTI.

    elhi, Chennai, /une, 0reater Mumbai, Kochi, Kolkata, Thiru%ananthapuram, /atna, Ahmedabad, Dehradun are some of the cities falling in the %ulnerability zone.

    Noting that a large number of buildings constructed in the past ha%e not been made earth"uake resistant, he said, NDMA is ensuring that the ne1 constructions that

    ome up are disaster resistant and the old buildings are retrofitted.+

    he NDMA is training a large number of architects, engineers and masons to make sure that any ne1 construction that comes up is earth"uake resistant.

    To ha%e a topography study, a team of e2perts from si2 ))Ts led by ))T3Mumbai is 1orking together to classify buildings in 45 different types, to make all buildings

    arth"uake resistant,+ he said.

    senior NDMA official said that 6*& districts fall in the seismic zones ) and .

    7e need to take into consideration structural safety, mitigation and preparedness and immediate response. 8ifeline buildings and telephone booths need to be

    etrofitted and critical installations in zone ) areas should not be allo1ed,+ the official said.

    9e said in spite of :apan being highly e"uipped and fully prepared, 1hen disaster struck, the country 1as de%astated.

    )t reminds us of our %ulnerability. Disaster management is not a one3day #ob. 7e ha%e already done mistakes in not closely monitoring our constructions in the past.+

    ince making all buildings earth"uake resistant is a state sub#ect, NDMA has already 1ritten to almost all the states to ensure safe construction as per disaster

    management guidelines.

    9o1e%er, a senior official rued No substantial response has been recei%ed so far.+

    ery fe1 buildings in )ndia meet the standards prescribed in ;)ndian -tandards Criteria for !arth"uake esistant Design; 3 first published by the

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    ndia still grinds northeast into Asia at roughly & cm e%ery year. The last significant 3 but not geologically significant 3 "uake in this area 1as the 655& temblor

    n /akistan3administered Kashmir, 1hich sits directly atop the clashing )ndian and !urasian plates. Around '5,555 people died.

    n &i!s:e&al eathquake ( Res!ue effot intensifies

    bout (5 percent of )ndia is %ulnerable to earth"uakes caused by the great, north1ard grind of the )ndian subcontinental landmass.

    he only serious earth"uake that modern )ndia remembers is the temblor that killed about 65,555 in 0u#arat in 6554. The 655> tsunami, 1hich resultedrom the third3most se%ere "uake e%er recorded, =.* on the ichter scale, occurred 1hen the )ndian plate slid 1ith greater %iolence than it normally does

    nder the neighbouring countries.

    No )ndian metropolis has 1itnessed a serious earth"uake, although Delhi lies in high3risk seismic zone >. -rinagar and 0u1ahati are in the highest3risk zone

    , and Mumbai, Chennai and Kolkata lie in zone *. 9istory ser%es a 1arning that a big one may come at any time. Those lessons come from and

    ssam in 4=&5.

    READ ALSO:n ndia) *+K) ,-) .ttaakhand fall unde "ost a!ti#e seis"i! /one

    lthough its epicentre 1as 45 km south of Mount !%erest, the

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    Seismic /onation map of a countr% is a guide to te seismic status of a region and its suscepti(ilit% to eart!ua"es$ India as (een divided into five #ones 'it respect to severeart!ua"es$ 0f tese /one V is seismicall% te most active 'ere eart!ua"es of magnitude 1 or more could occur recent strong motion o(servations around te 'orld averevolutioni#ed tin"ing on te design of engineering structures placing empasis also on te caracteristics of te structures temselves it sould (e reali#ed tat in te case osield t%pe eart!ua"es istoric data are insufficient to define #ones (ecause recurrence intervals are muc longer tan te recorded uman istor% tis ma% often give a falsesense of securit%$ 0ccurrence of te damaging eart!ua"e at 2atur falling in #one I is a t%pical e+ample of tis situation$

    &ause o# Earthquake :

    Te eart3s crust is a roc"% la%er of var%ing tic"ness ranging from a dept of a(out 45"ilometers under te sea to 67 "ilometers under te continents$ Te crust is not one piecconsists of portions called 'plates( 'ic var% in si#e from a fe' undred to tousands of "ilometers$ Te 8theory o# plate te!toni!s( olds tat teplates ride up on te more mmantleand are driven (% some %et unconfirmed mecanisms peraps termal convection currents$ Wen tese plates contact eac oter stress arises in te crust$ Tese strecan (e classified according to te t%pe of movement along te plate3s (oundaries9a. pulling a'a% from eac oter

    (. pusing against one anoter andc. sliding side'a%s relative to eac oter$

    :ll tese movements are associated 'it eart!ua"es$Te areas of stress at plate (oundaries 'ic release accumulated energ% (% slipping or rupturing are "no'n as ;faults;$teor% of ;elasticit%; sa%s tat te crustis continuousl% stressed (% te movement of te tectonic plates< it eventuall% reaces a point of ma+imum supporta(le strain$ : rupture toccurs along te fault and te roc" re(ounds under its o'n elastic stresses until te strain is relieved$ Te fault rupture generates vi(ration called seismic ,from te -ree" ;seismeaning soc" or eart!ua"e. 'aves 'ic radiates from te focus in all directions$ Te point of rupture is called te ;focus; and ma% (e located near te surface or deep (eloTe point on te surface directl% a(ove te focus is termed as te epicenter; of te eart!ua"e

    Magnitude9

    It is a !uantit% to measure te si#e of an eart!ua"e and is independent of te place of te o(servation$

    =icter Scale9

    Te local magnitude is defined as te logaritm of te ma+imum amplitude measured in microns on a seismogram 'ritten (% Wood*:nderson seismograp 'it free period of 5

    second magnification of >155 damping factor of 5$1 calculated to (e at a distance of 455 "ms$ Te relative si#e of events is calculated (% comparison to a reference event ofM2?5using te formula M2?log :*log :o

    'ere : is te ma+imum trace amplitude in micrometer recorded on a standard seismograp and :o is a standard value 'ic is a function of epicentral distance ,@. in"ilometers$

    Classification of earthquakes

    Category Magnitude on Richter Scale

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    Slight Upto 4.9

    Moderate 5.0 to 6.9

    Great 7.0 to 7.9

    Very Great 8.0 and more

    Source9 '''$imd$gov$inIndia as 'itnessed some of te most devastating eart!ua"es during te last centur% li"e te one in Aangra ,4B57. iar*Nepal ,4BD. and in :ssam ,4B75.$ In te recent paeart!ua"es ave caused avoc in Fttar"asi ,4BB4. 2atur ,4BBD. Ga(alpur ,4BB. Camoli ,4BBB. and in u) ,>554.$0n >6t Ganuar% >554 India e+perienced one of te 'orst eart!ua"es in recent times$ Measuring 6$B on te =icter scale te eart!ua"e caused incalcula(le damage not )uits epicenter u) (ut also to oter to'ns of te district of Autc and to a(out 755 villages out of te total of B55 villages$ Te reported damage to propert% in -u)arat 'as a(ou=s$>4 555crore and te num(er of uman lives lost 'ere a(out 4555$ 0f tese more tan 755 deats 'ere reported from :meda(ad situated at a distance of a(out D75 "from u)$ In te same cit% close to 475 multi*storied (uildings crum(led do'n$ Cities far a'a% from te epicenter li"e Surat too reported damage to propert%$

    S)ME DAMA*$+* EARTHQUAKES $+ $+D$A A+D A,,R)-$MATE +UM.ER )/ 0$1ES 0)ST

    Year of occurrence Place of

    occurrence

    Intensity Others

    1618 Bombay - - 2000 lives lost

    1720 Delhi 6.5 - ome lives lost17!7 Ben"al - - !00#000 lives lost

    180! $ath%ra 6.5 - &he sho'( )elt %p to *al'%tta.

    180! +%maon 6.5 - +illed 200-!00 people.

    1819 +%t'h'h 8.0 , *hie) tons o) &era# +athara and $othala ra/ed

    1828 rina"ar 6.0 - 1000 people (illed.

    18!! Bihar 7.7 , %ndreds o) people (illed

    1848 $t.b%# a3asthan 6.0 - e people (illed

    1869 ssam 7.5 - ))e'ted an area o) 2#50#000 . miles.

    1885 rina"ar 7.0 - +amiarary area destroyed.1897 hillon" 8.7 , ide spread destr%'tion in hillon".

    1905 ima'hal radesh 8.0 , &ho%sands o) people (illed.

    1906 ima'hal radesh 7.0 - eavy dama"e.

    1916 epal 7.5 - ll ho%ses 'ollapsed at Dhar'h%lla.

    1918 ssam 7.6 - eavy dama"e.

    19!0 Dh%bri# $e"halaya 7.1 , eavy dama"e in Dh%bri.

    19!4 Bihar# epal 8.! , ar"e n%mber o) border area people (illed.

    19!5 :%etta ;in a(istan< 7.5 , 25#000 people (illed

    1941 ndaman 8.1 , =ery heavy dama"e.

    1947 Dibr%"arh 7.8 - eavy dama"e.

    1950 ssam 8.6 , eavy dama"e to li)e and property.

    1952 > ndia 7.5 - eavy dama"e.

    1956 B%landshahar# U.. 6.7 = $any people (illed

    1956 n3ar# ?%3arat 7.0 = %ndreds o) people (illed

    1958 +ap(ote# U.. 6.! = $any people (illed

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    1967 +oyna# 6.1 = +oyna a"ar ra/ed.

    1969 Bhadra'halam 6.5 1 eavy dama"e.

    1986 Dharamshala ;.< 5.7 = ots o) dama"e.

    1988 ssam 7.2 , e people (illed

    1988 Bihar- epal 6.5 = ar"e n%mber o) people (illed.1991 Uttar(ashi 6.6 = ots o) dama"e to li)e and property.

    199! at%r 6.4 = eavy dama"e to li)e and property abo%t# 000 pe

    1997 @abalp%r 6.0 = ots o) dama"e to property# abo%t !9 lives lost.

    1999 *hamoli 6.8 = ots o) dama"e to property abo%t 100 people los

    2001 Bh%3 6.9 , %"e devastation# abo%t A 14000 people lost live

    EARTHQUAKE HA"ARDS $+ $+D$A

    India as ad a long istor% of eart!ua"e occurrences$ :(out 67 of te total area of te countr% is vulnera(le to seismic damage of (uildings in var%ing degrees$ Te mostvulnera(le areas according to te present seismic #one map of India are located in te Himala%an and su(*Himala%an regions Autc and te :ndaman and Nico(ar Islands$Jepending on var%ing degrees of seism cit% te entire countr% can (e divided into te follo'ing seismic regions9

    Aasmir and Western Himala%as * Covers te states of Gammu and Aasmir Himacal Prades and su(*mountainous areas of Pun)a(

    Central Himala%as * Includes te mountain and su(*mountain regions of Fttar Prades and te su(*mountainous parts of Pun)a(

    Nort*east India * Comprises te 'ole of Indian territor% to te east of nort engal

    Indo*-angetic (asin and =a)astan * Tis region comprises of =a)astan plains of Pun)a( Har%ana Fttar Prades and West engal

    Cam(a% and =ann of Autc

    Peninsular India including te islands of 2a"s'adeep

    Te :ndaman and Nico(ar Islands

    MEASURES /)R EARTHQUAKE R$SK REDU&T$)+

    Kor (etter understanding of all te possi(ilities of eart!ua"e ris" reduction it is important to classif% tem in terms of te role tat eac one of tem could pla%$ Terefore in teart!ua"e pase preparedness mitigation and prevention are concepts to 'or" on$ Post*disaster immediate rescue and relief measures including temporar% seltering soonan eart!ua"e until a(out D monts later and re*construction and re*a(ilitation measures for a period of a(out si+ monts to tree %ears need to follo'$ To encapsulate te moeffective measures of ris" reduction are pre*disaster mitigation preparedness and preventive measures to reduce vulnera(ilit% and e+peditious effective rescue and relief actioimmediatel% after te occurrence of te eart!ua"e$ Jepending upon te calamit% and its conse!uences strategies can also (e divided into long term ,five to fifteen %ears. meterm ,one to five %ears. and sort term ,to (e ta"en up immediatel% in ig ris" areas.$ Since it as (een reali#ed tat eart!ua"es don;t "ill people (ut fault% constructed (uildido te tas" of reducing vulnera(ilit% of structures and (uildings 'ill (e te "e% to eart!ua"e ris" reduction$ :lso pre*disaster preparedness troug a post*eart!ua"e responplan including training of te concerned personnel in various roles is considered essential for immediate and effective response after an eart!ua"e occurrence$ Te ma)or acpoints are igligted in te follo'ing paragraps$

    ,RE2D$SASTER ,RE1E+T$1E MEASURES0ong2term measures

    =e*framing (uildings; codes guidelines manuals and (%ela's and teir strict implementation$ Touger legislation for igl% seismic areas$

    Incorporating eart!ua"e resistant features in all (uildings at ig*ris" areas$

    Ma"ing all pu(lic utilities li"e 'ater suppl% s%stems communication net'or"s electricit% lines etc$ eart!ua"e*proof$ Creating alternative arrangements to reduce

    damages to infrastructure facilities$

    Constructing eart!ua"e*resistant communit% (uildings and (uildings ,used to gater large groups during or after an eart!ua"e. li"e scools daramsalas osp

    pra%er alls etc$ especiall% in seismic #ones of moderate to iger intensities$

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    Supporting =&J in various aspects of disaster mitigation preparedness and prevention and post*disaster management$

    Evolving educational curricula in arcitecture and engineering institutions and tecnical training in pol%tecnics and scools to include disaster related topics$

    Me%ium term measures

    =etrofitting of 'ea" structures in igl% seismic #ones$

    Preparation of disaster related literature in local languages 'it dos and don;ts for construction$

    -etting communities involved in te process of disaster mitigation troug education and a'areness$

    Net'or"ing of local N-0s 'or"ing in te area of disaster management$

    Earthquake /a!ts 3 Statisti!s

    /requen!y o# )!!urren!e o# Earthquakes

    Descriptor Magnitude !erage nnually

    ?reat 8 and hi"her 1

    $a3or 7 - 7.9 17 C

    tron" 6 - 6.9 1!4 C

    $oderate 5 - 5.9 1!19 C

    i"ht 4 - 4.9 1!#000 ;estimated5a#ards>5&>5disaster>5management$pdf

    GomeGSeasons & VarietiesGTillageGNutrient ManagementGIrrigation ManagementGWeed ManagementGCrop ProtectionGCost of CultivationG

    :ll =igts =eserved$ TN:F*>547

    http://agritech.tnau.ac.in/agriculture/agri_index.htmlhttp://agritech.tnau.ac.in/agriculture/crop_production_varieties.htmlhttp://agritech.tnau.ac.in/agriculture/crop_production_varieties.htmlhttp://agritech.tnau.ac.in/agriculture/agri_tillage_index.htmlhttp://agritech.tnau.ac.in/agriculture/agri_tillage_index.htmlhttp://agritech.tnau.ac.in/agriculture/agri_tillage_index.htmlhttp://agritech.tnau.ac.in/agriculture/agri_nutrientmgt.htmlhttp://agritech.tnau.ac.in/agriculture/agri_nutrientmgt.htmlhttp://agritech.tnau.ac.in/agriculture/agri_irrigationmgt.htmlhttp://agritech.tnau.ac.in/agriculture/agri_irrigationmgt.htmlhttp://agritech.tnau.ac.in/agriculture/agri_weedmgt.htmlhttp://agritech.tnau.ac.in/agriculture/agri_weedmgt.htmlhttp://agritech.tnau.ac.in/crop_protection/crop_prot.htmlhttp://agritech.tnau.ac.in/crop_protection/crop_prot.htmlhttp://agritech.tnau.ac.in/crop_protection/crop_prot.htmlhttp://agritech.tnau.ac.in/agriculture/agri_costofcultivation_indexpage12.htmlhttp://agritech.tnau.ac.in/agriculture/agri_costofcultivation_indexpage12.htmlhttp://agritech.tnau.ac.in/agriculture/agri_index.htmlhttp://agritech.tnau.ac.in/agriculture/crop_production_varieties.htmlhttp://agritech.tnau.ac.in/agriculture/agri_tillage_index.htmlhttp://agritech.tnau.ac.in/agriculture/agri_nutrientmgt.htmlhttp://agritech.tnau.ac.in/agriculture/agri_irrigationmgt.htmlhttp://agritech.tnau.ac.in/agriculture/agri_weedmgt.htmlhttp://agritech.tnau.ac.in/crop_protection/crop_prot.htmlhttp://agritech.tnau.ac.in/agriculture/agri_costofcultivation_indexpage12.html
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    ndia: Tri-cities of Chandigarh, Mohali and Punchkula, and Shimla on path to a better earthquake disaster preparedness

    Date:1 !eb "#1

    Source(s):Ministr$ of %ome &ffairs 'M%&(, India - go) *+ational isaster Management &uthorit$ '+M&(, India - go)

    ega Mock rill on earthquake preparedness as conducted b$ the go)ernments of %ar$ana, %imachal Pradesh, Pun.ab and /T Chandigarh in collaboration and guidance of +ational isaster Management

    uthorit$ '+M&( in tri-cities of Chandigarh, Mohali and Punchkula, and at Shimla on 1th !eb0, "#10 It is for the first time that such an effort has been made in this region0 These states and /T Chandigarh

    e in seismic ones I2 and 2 and therefore their )ulnerabilit$ to earthquake haard i s a matter of serious concern0 3arthquakes are one of the orst natural calamities hich can neither be predicted nor

    re)ented0 The impact of such a di saster on li)es and propert$ can be reduced considerabl$ b$ better preparedness and aareness0

    he +M& for the first time in histor$ of our countr$ initiated a pro.ect to de)elop a multi-state earthquake disaster scenario for a h$pothetical earthquake of Magn itude 4 ith its epicenter at Sundernagar

    on in Mandi istrict of %imachal Pradesh0 This h$pothetical Scenario has been de)eloped b$ team of earthquake engineering e5perts f rom IITs 6omba$ and Madras, and in consultation ith the 7adia

    stitute of %imala$an 8eolog$, Seismolog$ i)ision of IM and 8eological Sur)e$ of India under the guidance of +M&0 The simulation results ith the epicenter near Sundernagar in Mandi istrict of

    machal Pradesh hich lies in the seismic one 2 and pro.ects strong shaking in the States of %imachal Pradesh, %ar$ana, Pun.ab, and the /nion Territor$ of Chandigarh0 It has been considered to be on

    e Main 6oundar$ Thrust 'M6T( at a depth of 19 km, the MS Intensit$ map using the 6oore and &tkinson '"##4( 8MP3 has been used 0 It is seen that the ma5imum intensit$ obtained due to this

    arthquake ; < hich is obse r)ed at the rupture surface and the M6T fault is ruptured to a length of "## km o)er the districts starting from the middle of angra, passing through Mandi, 6ilaspur and Solan0

    he epicentre of the h$pothetical earthquake is located in a =seismic gap> in estern %imala$a and se)eral scientists e5pect this region to e5perience a large earthquake in the future0

    o ha)e a pragmatic assessment of coordinated response capabilities, sites ere carefull$ selected ith due consideration to encompass )aried range0 In all ?# sites ere selected such as go)ernment

    uildings, malls, engineering college, hospitals, office comple5es, airport, raila$ station, market area, schools, bus station, cinema halls, petrol stations etc0 In the tri-cities of Chandigarh, Mohali and

    unchkula, and at Shimla 0 & /nified Command, State 3mergenc$ @perations Center '3@C( and istrict 3@C ere setup ith dedicated stand alone isaster Management Communication +etork0

    onnecti)it$ as established ith +M& and M%& 3@Cs0

    bjectives of the exercise was:

    To generate greater public aareness about the )ulnerabilit$ of the region to disasters i th specific emphasis on earthquakes*

    Steps that need to be taken to reduce their impact on people, their famil$ and the communit$ etc0*

    0 To raise aareness that it is not the earthquake but the collapse of buildings and built infrastructure that result in in.ur$ and deaths0

    0 To highlight the importance of construction of safe buildings, hich compl$ ith earthquake resistant norms as also the requirement of assessment of e5isting lifeline and critical buildings, ater pipelines

    c0

    To test the response capabilities of )arious agencies at the state and district le)el, and*

    0 To identif$ the gaps0

    bout A## personnel from +B! organied in # teams, appro5 A## ci)il defense personnel and "# independent obser)ers from &rm$ participated in the e5ercise0 The emergenc$ support functionaries like

    olice, health, fire, ambulance, ci)il defense, poer and P7 etc participated0 uring the mock drill the response time, communication, coordination and skills of these emergenc$ support functionaries ere

    bser)ed0 &t the same time the local residents benefi tted from the mock drill hich resulted in increased aareness0

    e ould consider that the success of this drill has been the identification of the gaps in our response preparedness and actions, and this ill la$ a strong foundation for enhanced preparedness efforts to be

    rried out in a sustained manner in future

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    he key important lessons learnt are:

    +ecessit$ of establishment isaster Management Plans at )arious le)els*

    +eed for state-of-the art emergenc$ operation centres at the state and district l e)el ith redundanc$*

    0 Setting-up and use of ireless communication s$stem for the stakeholders to more effecti)el$ deal ith an earthquake disaster cenario*

    0 Becognise capacit$ of ha)ing better road accessibilit$ in case of disaster*

    Identification of requirements of state-of-the-art equipment and s$stematic in)entor$ of resources, both ith go)t0 and pri)ate sector*

    0 +eed for adequate number of ambulances*

    i0 8reater public aareness and sensitiation of people for enhanced preparedness0

    ii0 The need to make $ounger generation aare of the earthquake haards and coping mechanism0

    he +M& in close collaboration ith other states in seismic ones I2 D 2 is planning to f ocus on earthquake disaster preparedness o)er the ne5t to-three $ears0

    EEEEEEEEE

    View press release Fe5t0 linkG

    Keywords

    Themes:Capacit$ e)elopment, Critical Infrastructure, isaster Bisk Management

    a!ar"s:3arthquake

    #ountries$%e&ions:India

    hort '%:http:HHpre)entioneb0netHgoH""9

    a& This Document

    a&s

    omma separate" *& &en"er events+ women

    Jog in to )ie $our tags

    lease contribute+ submit news or announcements

    e)ention7eb elcomes submissions from the disaster risk reduction communit$0 Please contribute0

    ubmit nes or announcements

    ubmit nes or announcements

    ools

    a)e

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    mail this page

    ost-./01 Disaster %isk %e"uction

    5plore the 7CBB intergo)ernmental, multi-stakeholder and public forum sessions and outcomes

    7CBB ebsite

    Most buildings in city not earthquake-safe

    Civic Bodies Train Engineers But No Survey Done To Categorize Buildings

    Risha Chitlangia TNN

    New Delhi: Tuesdays mild tremors might not have caused any damage but

    with Delhi being the epicentre concerns have been raised about the

    governments preparedness to handle an earth!ua"e# Delhi is vulnerable to

    earth!ua"es is no secret considering it $alls under seismic level % But are

    we prepared $or a moderate to high intensity earth!ua"e with Delhi as the

    epicentre'

    The answer un$ortunately is no# (%t is hard to imagine the damage

    caused by an earth!ua"e with high intensity# The city has over )* la"h

    buildings+ a ma,ority o$ them do not adhere to the sa$ety code nor have

    hey been constructed under proper technical supervision- said S N

    .ahapatra senior specialist in earth!ua"e and Tsunami National Disaster

    .anagement /uthority 0ND./1#

    Though the Delhi governments disaster management authority has been

    conducting campaigns to spread awareness on building sa$ety little e2ort

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    has gone into ensuring that buildings especially highrises are sa$e and

    earth!ua"e3resistant# Every year the civic agencies here approve thousands

    o$ plans $or constructing new buildings# No thought seems to be spared $or

    he stability o$ these structures# Though it is mandatory to get a

    certi4cate$rom a structural engineer sources say it has been reduced to aormality+ most building owners dont even apply $or a completion certi4cate

    rom civic agencies#

    Civic agencies with the help o$ ND./ have trained their engineers in

    denti$ying dangerous buildings and dividing them into three categories:

    collapsible non3collapsible and those liable to economic loss# Even so no

    e5ercise has been underta"en to categorize buildings in the city# %n the past

    wo years many surveys have been conducted especially in east Delhi to

    chec" the stability o$ buildings#

    /$ter the 6alita 7ar" building collapse .CD had carried out a massive

    survey along with the National %nstitute o$ Disaster .anagement 0N%D.1 to

    denti$y dangerous buildings# The 4ndings were shoc"ing# (/ ma,ority o$

    buildings in the area had serious structural de$ects# Thertea$ter we taught

    close to 899 .CD engineers how to identi$y structurally un4t buildings said

    Chandan hosh head o$ the geo3hazard ris" management division N%D.#

    E5perts say the government must ta"e drastic measures to minimize the

    damage caused by an earth!ua"e# ;rom setting up a body to monitor the

    !uality o$ construction to giving incentives $or carrying out a lot needs tobe done# (Building audits should be routine# Delhi needs a council on the

    ines o$ the Tall Building Council in .umbai to loo" into the sa$ety o$

    highrises#