Macro-zonation of landslide susceptibility in Garamaura-Swarghat-Gambhar section of national highway 21, Bilaspur District, Himachal Pradesh (India)

Landslides the most common geo-hazard in hilly terrain are short lived phenomena but cause extraordinary landscape changes and destruction of life and property. The frequency and intensity of landslides occurrences along NH-21 during the rainy season not only disrupts traffic movement but also misbalance the agro-economic and developmental activities of the region frittering away thousand crores of rupees from the exchequer. An assessment of landslide susceptibility is, therefore, a prerequisite for sustainable development of the region. The present study deals with the preparation of macro-zonation maps of landslide susceptibility in an area of about 100 sq km on 1: 50,000 scale across Garamaura-Swarghat section of National Highway-21. The map has been prepared by superimposing the terrain evaluation maps in a particular zone such as lithological map, structural map, slope morphometry map, relative relief map, land use and land cover map and hydrological condition map using landslide susceptibility evaluation factor rating scheme and calculating the total estimated susceptibility as per the guidelines of IS: 14496 (Part-2) 1998). Numerical weightages are assigned to the prime causative factors of slope instability such as lithology, structure, slope morphometery, relative relief, land use and groundwater conditions as per the scheme approved by Bureau of Indian Standard for the purpose of landslide susceptibility zonation. The area depicts zones of different instability. The identified susceptibility zones compared with landslide intensity in the area show some congruence with the weightages of the inputs. The incongruence in intensity and frequency of landslide occurrences and the inferred susceptibility zones of BIS scheme allow other geotechnical considerations and causative factors to be incorporated for the landslide susceptibility zonation.