Introduction - Semi-quantitative Approaches for Landslide Assessment and Prediction - page 13

landslide-related damages further indicated that lithology and geomorphology also
played a signi cant role in causing these earthquake induced landslides. The debris-

laden slope which is made of loose unconsolidated material and the slope covered
by thin unconsolidated scree deposits have been more prone to failure by this
earthquake. Frequency of rock fall and rockslides are more in areas which are
generally vulnerable due to steep slope, weathered and fractured lithology and
unfavourably jointed and kinematically-unstable slopes (GSI Report October 19,
2011, Engineering Geology Division, Eastern Region, Kolkata).
From 14 to 17 June 2013, the Indian state of Uttarakhand and adjoining areas
received heavy rainfall, which was about 375 % more than the benchmark rainfall
during a normal monsoon. The upper Himalayan territories of Himachal Pradesh
and Uttarakhand are home to several major and historic Hindu and Sikh pilgrimage
sites besides several tourist spots and trekking trails. Heavy rainfall for four con-
secutive days as well as melting snow aggravated the floods. Torrential and unre-
lenting downpour, landslides and floods saw the raging waters sweep away more
than 180 people and hundreds of livestock to death. More than 70,000 pilgrims
have been stranded even as the Army and Air Force try to rescue them in a hostile
terrain. Of all the affected areas, Kedarnath was the worst hit. Extreme rains have
wreaked havoc in the region, with the tenuousness of the Himalayan soil stability
resulting in killer landslides. But environmentalists claim that widespread and
almost unregulated expansion of giant hydro-electric projects in the region, the
incessant construction of roads to serve the burgeoning tourist population, and the
adverse effect on the fragile ecosystem in the region due to growing human pres-
ence and pollution are the major causes for the devastation that Uttarakhand has
been subjected to.
However, according to eyewitnesses huge rocks broke away from Kedar Dome
after the flash floods caused by the cloudburst (Fig. 1.6 a, b). Reports say that the
temple

s mount at the gateway
to the temple, too was buried under over 6 feet of mud and rocks, like most of
Kedarnath. It however survived the onslaught of the mudslide. Even the 14-km
stretch of roadway from Gaurikund to Kedarnath has been totally submerged,
making entry or exit impossible. This is what led to pilgrims being stranded
(Fig. 1.10 ). Even Ram Bada, between Gaurikund and Kedarnath, is totally invisible
from the rescue helicopters. So while the two sides

' s courtyard has been washed away and Nandi, Shiva '

— the environmentalists and the

government squabble over the root causes of the disaster, thousands of lives hang

by a thin thread. The massive slope failure destroyed human settlements (Figs. 1.7
and 1.8 ) and eliminated Ram Baba Road (Fig. 1.19 ) at Kedarnath and its adjoining
areas. Some fresh slope failure completely damaged mountain slope vegetation
cover (Figs. 1.9 , 1.11 and 1.12 ) [Source: Disaster Mitigation and Management
Centre, Govt. of Uttarakhand, 2014].
Apart from such catastrophic landslides, many small-scale slope failures go
unreported, especially when they occur in remote areas of the Himalaya. Further-
more, the loss of productive lands in the hills due to landslides and related mass
erosion phenomena during every rainy season, which are seldom reported unless
they involve the loss of life, is so great that a quanti

—

ed economic loss would