Broad Gauge Rail Link Between Sivok in West Bengal and Rangpo in the State of Sikkim with Future Connectivity to Gangtok (Sikkim)-Shallow-Landslide Susceptibility Map

The Project aims at connecting Rangpo town (Sikkim State) with the existing Sivok Railway Station on N.F. Railway with a Broad Gauge Single Line in West Bengal State. This alignment will cross an area with steep hills, dense forests in the District of Darjeeling (West Bengal State) and East Sikkim (Sikkim State). Landslides are quite common in West Bengala and Sikkim causing relevant damages each year. The Special Publication no. 94 of the Geological Survey of India An Inventory of Major Landslides in Sikkim-Darjeeling Himalaya describes 164 major landslides: 32 rock slides, 33 debris slides and 99 complex slides. Landslides generally occur along one or more discrete surfaces and commonly involve earth and/or rock debris or bedrock, although sometimes both the bedrock and the shallow cover are involved. Local geological features and the high intensity of rainfall are the main causes of landslides occurrence. Yearly precipitation in the capital of Sikkim average similar to 3,539 mm, mainly occurring during the monsoon season. This work presents a landslide hazard map produced by combining a number of thematic raster datasets related to the triggering factors of shallow-landslides occurrence: Slope; Cover type; Vegetation; Prevailing mineralogical composition. Operational phases followed to produce the hazard map are the following: Data acquisition; Shallow landslide inventory map for the study area; Definition of unique condition units; Hazard assessment.