PARLIAMENT QUESTION: MAPPING OF LANDSLIDE PRONE AREAS
PARLIAMENT QUESTION: MAPPING OF LANDSLIDE PRONE AREAS
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.
State
Low
Low %
Moderate
Moderate %
High
High %
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 (UT)
19
65
7
23
3
12
Karnataka
26
82
4
14
1
4
Kerala
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. This includes 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.