Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar presided over the meeting of experts through virtual mode to discuss frequent landslides in Himachal Pradesh and steps to be taken to mitigate its effect.On the occasion, the Governor expressed the concern about recurrence losses of lives and property due to frequent landslides in the State and he stressed on the need of implementing scientific and engineering solutions to mitigate the losses occurring due to landslides. He asked the experts and authorities to provide a holistic solution within a time frame to make the state of Himachal Pradesh as a role model for landslide risk resilient state.He asked to identify the area vulnerable to landslide hazards and calculate the risk taking into consideration the exposure and vulnerability. It was essential to prepare the detailed project report of landslides to be mitigated, he added. He said that the task force should work on geological inputs and civil engineering parameters.
Shri Arlekar has directed to select Kinnaur as pilot district for preparing detailed project reports for landslide prone areas.Secretary to the Governor Vivek Bhatia coordinated the meeting. Director Disaster Management, Government of Himachal Pradesh Sudesh Kumar Mokta gave a brief overview regarding various steps taken and initiatives made by the department for relief, management, mitigation and research. He intimated that the Government was already aware of the issues involved and has undertaken various researches in partnership with Geological Survey of India. Dr. S. Raju, Addl. Director General (ADG), Geological Survey of India, CHQ, Kolkata, Dr. O. P. Mishra, Adviser & Director, National Center for Seismology (NCS), Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES), New Delhi, Prof. A. K. Mahajan, Central University, HP., Dr. Vikram Gupta, Scientist F & Head, Landslide Hazard Group, Wadia Institute of Himalayan Geology (WIHG), Dehradun, Dr. Himanshu Mittal, Scientist, National Center for Seismology, Ministry of Earth Sciences, New Delhi, Shri A. K. Mishra, Director, GHRM, Geological Survey of India, Shri Amar Nath, Director Projects, Founder trustee, NAULA Foundation, Prof. Dhirendra Sharma, HP Technical University, Hamirpur, Dr. Kala Venkat Uday, Asstt. Prof. IIT, Mandi, H.P, Shri Vivekananda Pai, Secretary, Vigyan Bharti and Dr. Vivek, IIT, Delhi also gave their valuable inputs regarding landslides.