I OSR Journal Of Humanit ies And Soci al Sci ence (I OSR

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JHSS)

Volume 20, I ssue 7, Ver. V(Jul y 2015), PP

28
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34

e
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I SSN: 2279
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0837, p
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I SSN: 2279
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0845.

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A Deva sta ting Dis a ster: A Cas e S tu dy of Nepal Ea rt h qua ke and

Its I mpa cto n Hu ma n Bei ng s

So urav Dey

(Dep a rtmen t o f G eo g ra p h y, Th a ku r P a n ch a na n Mah ila Mah a vid

ya la ya an d Dewa n ha t
Ma h a vid ya la ya , I n d ia )

Abst ract
:

Ea rth q u a ke is o n e

o f th e d ea d ly n a tu ra l d isa st ers

we h a ve
reg u la rly

ex p eri en ce d .

Nep a l
a n d its
a d ja ce n t

a rea s a re vu ln era b le to ve ry h ig h ma g n itu d e

o f
earth q u a ke . Th e
Hima la ya n b elt
, B ih a r
-

Nep a l b o rd er
,
A ssa m

and

No rth B en g a l esp ec ia lly Da rjeelin g , Ja lp a ig u ri

, A lip u rd u a r

and
Co o ch B eha r d istric t
s fa ll in th is
seismic

zo n e.

On th e b a sis o f in ve stig
a tio n it h a s b ee n fo u n d th a t
rec en t
ea rth q u a ke s h a d

d estru cted ma n y
h u ma n
lives a nd

th eir

p ro p erties

in Nep a l a n d no rth

I n d ia
.
Th e
ea rth q u ake wa s

co n sid ered to b e th e ma in ca u se
fo r a va la n ch es, la n d slid es,

slu mp s,
ma n y crea ks an d fissu res in

th e

ad ja ce n t a rea o f Nep a l.
Th e p resen t stu d y
en d ea vo
u
rs to ex a min e th e
n a tu re, ex ten t,

ca u ses a n d con seq u en ce s o f th e

tremo r o f q u a ke s
a n d su gg ests
su ita b le
rec o mme n d a tio n s

fo r its rev iva l.

Th e sp ec if ied o b jective s h a ve b ee n fu lfilled

by

th e

u tiliza tio n o f
ma p s
o f
I n d ia n Meteo ro lo g ica l Dep a rtmen t (I MD ) a n d

Go o g le ima g es
. Nec es sa ry ma p s,

d ia g ra ms

a n d ta b les

h a ve
b ee n p rep a red fo r

ex p o sitio n o f th ese p ro b lems

.

Key words
:

Ob jective s,
Ca u s
es o f e a rth q u a ke , co n seq u en ces
and
R ec o mme nd a tio n s
.

I.

Int roducti on

E ar thq uake i s a vio le nt tr e mo r in the

ea r t h

cr ust, se nd i ng o ut a ser ies o f sho c k and after sho ck

wave s ( L
wa ves)

in all d ir ec tio n fr o m its fo cu s

. E ar thq ua kes co nst it ute o ne o f the mo s t ter r ib le natur al haz ar d
s whic h
o ften t ur n i nto d isa ster ca us i ng e xte nsi ve d eva statio n a nd lo ss
o f hu ma n li ves

a nd
thei r
p r op er ties
. A d ea d l y
ea r thq ua ke s ho o
k Nep al and s ent
tr e mo r s t hr o u gh I nd ian su b co ntine nt. On 2 5
th

Ap r il and 1 2
th

Ma y 2 0 1 5 ,

Nep al
and it s s ur r o u nd in g ar ea wer e hit b y ea r thq uake s wh ic h ar e co
nsid er ed to b e t he mo s t d e vastat in g i n the li vi ng
me mo
r y o f t he i nhab ita nts o f t hese a f fec ted

ar ea s. T he 7 . 9 magni tud e
q ua ke was t he str o ng est to hit Ne p al fo r 8 1
yea r s.
I t was t he mo st ho r r ib le natur al d isaster to hit

Nep al

since t he

1 9 3 4 Nep al

B ihar
bo r d er
ea r thq uake
.
T he
q uake mea s ur i ng 7 . 9 o n t he Rich ter
sca le,

wh ic h was fo ll o wed b y
97

after sho c ks o f mag nit ud e

s

3 . 0
-
6 . 9 o n
Rich ter sca le
,
ca u sed

hea v y ca su
alt ies i n Kat h mand u and inj ur ed

tho u sand o ther s. T he ea r thq ua ke

s

had its
ep icentr e at L u mj u ng, ar o u nd 8 0 km no r th
-
west o f
Kath ma nd u
. I t

had its i mp ac t i n se ve r al
ar ea s in Nep al and

I nd ia. I t was a lso felt i n no r ther n

a nd no r th
-
ea ster n p ar t o f I nd ia,

C hina,
T ib et
, B anglad es h a nd as far a
s
P akistan.

Co nti nued

a fter s ho cks

o cc ur r ed t hr o ug ho u t

Nep al and
i ts ad j ac ent ar ea

at

15

2 0 min ute s i nter vals,

wit h o ne s ho ck r ea c hi ng a m agni tud e o f 6 . 9 o n 2 6 Ap r il at

1 2 :4 2

I ST
.

I t was

maj o r
ea r thq ua ke

si milar i n
inte nsit y to the 1 9 3 4 Mun gh yr and the 2 0 0 1 Guj ar at E ar thq uakes.

A sec o nd maj o r ear thq uake o cc ur r ed o n 1 2 Ma y 2 0 1 5 at 1 2:3 5 I

ST
wit h a

ma gn itud e
o f 7 . 3

o n Richter
sca le.

T he ep icent
r
e

wa s n
ea r the Chi na b o r d er b etwee n

Ka th mand u

and

Mt. E ver est

, at Ko d ar i
aro und
1 1 3 kms
ea st o f Kat h mand u
. I t str uc k at t he d e
p th o f 1 8 . 5

k m. T h is ea r t hq ua ke

o cc ur r ed alo n g the sa me fa ult a s t he

o r iginal ea r t hq ua ke o f 2 5 Ap r il 2 0 1 5 .

As s uch, it is co nsid er ed to b e an

af ter s ho ck

o f the 2 5 Ap r il
q uake.

T r emo r s wer e also fe lt in

B ihar
,

Uttar P r ad esh
,

W est B engal

a nd o ther No r th
-
ea st
I nd ian Sta tes.

II.

P robl em s

On t he b asis o f in ves tiga tio n i t has b ee n fo

u nd t hat
the ea r t h q uake a nd its

e ffec t s
ar e maj o r p r ob lem i n
stud y ar ea . I n st ud y ar ea , the r egio n o f co nver gence o f I n d
ian p late a nd E ur a sian p late is mo r e v ul ner ab le to
ea r thq ua kes.

T he p r o b lem u n d er stud y is to asse ss t he nat ur e

o f
ea r thq ua kes

a nd to d eter mine
sp ec ifical l y t he
exten t
o f t his
t yp e o f
d i saster
, in d etails thr o ug h d ata ge ner ated fr o m
I nd ia n Me teo r o lo gi ca l Dep ar t me nt ( I MD )
and Geo lo gical S ur ve y o f I nd ia
.
T he o ther mai n p r o b lem is to co nstr uct

un scien tifi c and no n

-
sei s micall y
engi nee r ed multi sto r ied

b uild ing s

wh ich

had

ea sil y co llap s ed b y the tr e mo r ,

d isr up ti ng ci vic li fe in

Nep al.

T his
r esear ch wo r k will d ea l p ar ticular l y wi th o ne o f the c ur r ent is sue
s o f co n seq ue nce o f ea r thq ua kes

as wel l as
d iffer e nt p r o b lem o f

h u man b e ing s r elate d with ma ssi ve d a

mages.

III.

Study Are a

T he
Nep al and
so me d i str icts o f no r th I nd ia
alo ng the
I nd i a
-
Nep al
b o r d er have

b ee n sel ec ted fo r t his

stud y
.

T he st ud y ar ea i s b o und ed b y
2 1 °3 3
´0 7 . 0 4 ´´

N to 3 0 °2 1
´0 2 . 5 3 ´´

N Latit ud es an d 7 7
°
06
´3 3 . 7 7 ´´

E to
9 5 °5 6
´3 1 . 1 6 ´´

E Lo n git ud e i n

Nep al and t he s tates o f

I nd ia, na mel y
W est B en gal, B i har , Uttar P r ad esh, Assa m
and Sik ki m ( Fi g ur e 1 ) . T his ar ea r ep r esents a zo ne o f tr a nsit
io n b et wee n the
K u nl un r ange o f C hi na

and t he

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p enin sular p latea u o f I nd ia

, an d d isp lays the t yp ical char ac te r istics

o f t he
Hi mala ya
n r a nge
and its

fo o th ills.

I t i
s
co ver in g an ar ea o f 6
, 5 6 , 5 58

sq . k m.

F ig ure: 1 . Study a re a.

IV.

Me t hodol ogy

T his r esear ch wo r k is b ased o n the e mp ir ical stud y o f

co nseq ue nce s o f ea r thq uake s
. A s yste mat ic
met ho d o lo gical p r incip le wa s fo llo wed in thi s
st ud y

wo r k
. T he
who le

wo r k ca n b e r ep r esented in
to
thr ee b r o ad

ca tego r ies wh ich ar e no ted b el o w

-

4 . 1

P re f ield study

At t he b egi n nin g i nte nsi ve lite r atur e r evie w fr o m r elate d b o

oks, j o ur nals,
ar ticle s, go ver n ment
p ub licatio n, etc. ha s b ee n d o n e to sp ec if y t he r esear ch p r o b
le m and selec tin g t he st ud y ar e a and to p ic o f this
r esear ch wo r k.

4 . 2

F ield study

T he sp atial in fo r matio n

co ll ec ted fr o m
I
nd ia n
M
eteo r o lo gical Dep ar t me nt ( I MD )

a nd Geo lo gical
Sur ve y o f I nd ia

wa s al so ta ken i n
to
co n sid er atio n. P r i mar y

a nd sec o nd ar y d ata
has b ee n o b tained t hr o u gh
inte
r ne t a nd cur r en t Ne ws P a p er s
.
P ho to gr ap hic r ec o r d s o f the r elate d fea tur es ha ve

a ls o b ee n co llected

fr o m
d iffer e nt so ur ce s
.

4 . 3

P o st
f ield study

T he stud y o f e mp i
ri
c
al o b ser vatio n has b ee n d o ne ver y ca r efull y t hr o ug h mea s ur e me
nt and anal ysi s
p r o ce ss to k no w t he
ca u ses an d co nseq ue nce s o f
q ua kes. Da ta

and o t her

in fo
r mat io n a vail ab le and ge ner ated

on
the f ield wer e co mp iled u si ng ap p r o p r iate mo d er n tec hn iq ues o n
co mp uter and satel lite i ma ges,

atla s and
d iffer e nt map s.
T he co llec ted d ata ha ve b ee n q ua nti fied , a n al yze d a nd s yn the
sized b y u si ng sta nd ar d stati stical

and ca r to gr ap hic

met ho d s.

V.
O bjecti ve
s

Sever e, p r ec ise and r atio nal

o
b j ec tives have b ee n cho se n fo r the scie nti fic stud y o f t he ab o ve me
ntio ned p r o b lem
o f the st ud y ar ea , wh ich ar e n o ted b elo w:
-

1.

T o hig hli ght t he p r o b le m o f ea r thq ua kes i n Nep al and its ad j ac

ent a r ea .

2.

T o exa mi ne the nat ur e and

ext ent o f t his.

A Dev ast ati ng Disast er: ACase Study of Nepal Eart hquake and It sI mpact
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3.

T o emp hasize t he ca u ses a nd co nseq ue nce s o f t he tr e mo r o f r ec

ent q uake s.

4.

T o sug gest su itab le p r eventio n mea s ur es.

VI.

Li t erat ure Revi ew

After i nd ep end ence so me fa m o us scien tist

s

a nd geo gr ap her
s

p ub lis hed to o
man y r esear c h p ap er s o n the
natur e a nd map p in g
o f the
E ar thq ua ke haz ar d s
.
He mmad y,
A. K. R.
p ub lis hed a classic b o o k

( 1 9 96 ) ,

B o lt, B . A. p ub lished

E ar thq uake s

1993
) . Ano the r p op ular ar ticle w
a s p ub lis h ed b y Daks hi nar anj an
Nand y (
2007

Ma p p ing E ar thq ua ke Haz ar d s

E ar thq ua ke haz ar d p r ed ictab le, the

authe ntic
ar ticle
wa s
p ub lished i n
2007

Ob ser vatio n o f p r e
-
sei s mic si gnal s thr o u g h Geo che mical Mo nito r in g

b y t he
senio r
Scie nti st

a nd r esear ch
sc ho lar

o f Dep ar t me nt

o f Science a nd T ec hno lo g y and Dep ar t ment o f

Ato mic E ner g y
,
Hir o k C haud hur i, N i
sit s K. Da s, Rake sh K . B hand ar i, Deb asis G ho se, P r asanta Sen and
B i kas h
Sin ha
. Ot her

wel l
-
k no wn
;

) o f
F. P r ess

VII .

Causes Of Eart hquake

E ar thq uake o f Nep al a nd I nd i a alo ng the Hi mala ya n b elt wer e ca

used main l y d ue to co lli sio n o f I nd ia n
p late and E ur asia n p late.
Dee p f
o cus a nd hi gh ma gni tud es

of

ea r thq ua kes ar e ca u sed alo ng t he co n ver ge nt p late

b o und ar ies b ec au se o f co lli si o n o f t wo co n ver ge nt p lates, na
me l y E ur as ian and I nd ian co nver ge nt p lates.
T he
sub d uctio n o f I nd ia n p late b elo w E ur as ian p late ca used Nep al ea r
thq ua k
e at the b elt o f Hi mala ya.
Ap r il 2 5 a
nd
Ma y 1 2 , 2 0 15 ea r thq uakes ha d

o cc ur r ed o n the no r ther n b o und ar y o f the I nd ia n p late wh ich is

und er thr usti n g
the E ur asia n p late.

T he main ca use o f Nep al ea r thq uake s is attr ib uted to the no r th war d

mo ve me nt o f I nd ia n
p late. T he I nd ian p late i s mo vi ng to war d no r th
-

no r thea st wa r d d ir ec tio n at an a ver age r ate o f ab o ut 4 . 5

-
5 c m p er
ann u m, wh ich ca use s a str e ss . On

25
th

Ap r il 2 0 1 5 , the
st
r e ss b ui lt

up
as

the I nd ian a nd E ur asia n p lates

s lid e
und er
o ne

o ther ca u sin g
ea r th q uake
. T he ep icentr e o f these t wo ea r thq ua kes
has
la y o n t he b o und ar y o f t hese
t wo p lates.
T he ea r th q uake wa s ca used a
t
the
d ep th o f 1 0

kilo metr es. T he 1 8 8

after sh o cks

mea sur i ng

ar o u nd
3 . 0
-
6 . 9 ma gni tud es i n Rich te r sca le
wer e at
t he
d ep th s o f 1 0
-
5 0 kilo metr es
.

After t he maj o r ea r
thq uake, the

t heir eq u il ib r iu m. T he after sho c ks ar e b a

ea r th get b ac k its
eq uilib r iu m.

VII I.

Consequ
ences Of Eart hquakes

T he haz ar d o us effec t o f Nep al ea r thq uake s d ep end

s no t

onl y
o n
t heir ma gni tud e o f Ri chter sca le
o r
inte nsit y alo ne, b u t
also

o n so man y fac to r s, s uch a s ge o lo g y o f t he ea r th cr ust ( lit h o

lo g y, elastic it y, so il
co nd itio n, p er mis sib le str es s, r o ck str uctur e, etc. ) , d esig n
o f b uild in gs, q uali t y o f co nstr uctio n, p o p ulatio n
p r essur e, etc. Se ver al vil lage s, to wns, hu ma n co n str uct io ns
a nd their p r o p er ties, live s wer e co m
p lete l y d a maged .
T he ur b an ar ea o f Kath ma nd u, t he

ca p ital o f Nep al,

wa s

c o mp lete l y d estro yed b y Ap r il ea r thq ua ke wh ich hi t

Nep al. Sever al b uild i ng s co llap sed li
ke a p ac
k o f ca r d s
as if the y wer e mud hu ts
.

A Dev ast ati ng Disast er: ACase Study of Nepal Eart hquake and It sI mpact
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F ig ure: 2 . Af f ect ed a re a o f Nepa l e a rt hqua ke.

Sever al b uild i ng s, mo st o f the m

o ld , co llap sed in the d ensel y p o p ulated Kath m and u valle y.

sq uar e, a UNE SC O wo r ld her ita ge sit e

,

wa s
to tall y

d a ma ged in the q uake.

Har s h

d a mage
to o k
p lace
to

t he

p ar ts o f the p alac e

co mp lex i n Va san thap ur a Sq uar e.

T
he s ite o f p alac es

a nd te mp les o f t he c it y
wer e

war r e n o f nar r o w la nes and histo r ic str uc tur e.

Kat h mand u r es id ents r an o

nto t he str ee ts and o t her
o p en

F ig ure: 3 . Ef f ec t o f Nepa l e art hqua ke.

E ar thq uake s ar e o fte n fo llo we d b y la nd slid e s and r o ck a vala

nche s a nd glacie r a vala nche s i n Hi mala yan
hill y ar ea s.
T he q ua ke ca used avala nche s o n Mo un t E ver es t ,
mak in g t he cli mb er s r un ni ng fo r co ver and

killi n g
at least 1 8 p eo p le at t he s tar t o f t he main cl
i mb in g sea so n. At least 1 0 0 0 cli mb
er s had b e en at the b a se ca mp o f

the E ver e st wh en the ea r t hq ua ke str uck. T he b ase ca mp had b ee

n sever el y d a maged a nd th e

tea ms wer e tr ap p ed .

A Dev ast ati ng Disast er: ACase Study of Nepal Eart hquake and It sI mpact
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B ec ause o f p o o r p ho ne
net wo r k
co ver age the go ver n me nt o f I nd ia and Nep al wer e str
ug gli n g to asses s the
d ama ge o n t he E ver e st.

At

La ngta n g

valle y

in

Ras u wa

d istr ict,

maj o r

to
ur ist

d estin atio n

in

Nep al
,

also

fa mo u s

fo r

tr ekki ng,

it

is

said

that

o ver

100

p eo p le

wer e

killed

and

120
pe
o p le

wer e

inj ur ed

or

miss in g

fo l lo w
i n g

the

mas sive

avalanc he

wh ich

s wep t

a wa y

t he

e ntire

villa ge

in

the

wa ke

of

t he

p o wer f ul

q ua ke

t hat

hit

Ras u wa

d i str ict.

. O ver
3 2 9 p eo p le wer e r ep o r ted mi
ssi n g after a n ava lanc he str uck
G ho d atab ela and t he

L angta n g

v illa ges
. T he
avalanc he wa s esti mated to

be

3 kilo metr es wid e.

Co nti n uo us af ter sho c ks ca u se d a land sl id e o n t he

Ko s hi Hig h wa y

whic h b lo c ked the sec ti o n o f the r o ad

b et wee n

B hed etar

and Mul gh at. Ma n y s maller

land slid es

o cc u
r r ed in the

T r ishuli R iver

Valle y wit h r ep o r ts o f
sig ni fica nt d a ma ge at Ma ilu n g, Si mle, and

Ar c hale

ar ea s
.

As a
r esult o f la nd slid e the tr ans
p o r t s yste m mai nl y
hig h wa ys was

co mp letel y d a maged o r b lo cked , wh ic h ma y s to p var io us ac ti

vitie s nee d ed fo r ea r thq ua ke r elie f
and r escue. La nd slid es a lso b l o cked the r i ver cha nne ls, se wage
and o t her co mmu nica tio n s yste m i n Nep a
l and
no w in I nd ia sp ec iall y

in

Dar j ee lin g d istr ict.

B ihar , W est B enga l and Uttar P r ad esh wer e t he wo r st a f fec t ed p

ar ts o f I nd ia. T he tr e mo r s wer e felt the
str o nge st in t he d istr icts alo n g the
I nd o
-
Nep al b o r d er , whic h lie in the seis mic zo ne V

( ver y hi gh s
e is mic zo ne)
.
Mud wal l, b uild in gs a nd b o und ar y wall
s

i n d if fer ent lo ca ti o ns o f Sili g ur i and J alp aig

ur i

had co llap sed b ec ause

o f the tr e mo r s. At least 5 2 p eo p le wer e killed a nd 2 3 7

wer e

inj ur ed in I nd ia in a p o
wer ful ea r t hq ua ke, wit h
ep icent
r
e

in N
ep al,
wh ich d estro yed o r d a maged

sever al h o uses a nd b ui ld in gs in B i har , Uttar P r ad esh, W est

B engal and s ur r o u nd in g ar ea . Acc o r d in g to Uni
o n Ho me Mi nistr y, 3 8 p eo p le

d ied in B ihar , 1 1 in Uttar P r ad esh

and 3 in W est B engal, wher e 4 3 scho o l child r en wer e inj ur e d
.

T
he maj o r it y o f the d ea th s wer e r ep o r ted fr o m the
no r ther n d istr ict s b o r d er ing N ep al. Acc o r d ing to B ihar Dis
aster Ma nage me nt Dep ar t men t r ep o r t, 8 p eo p le d ied
in E ast C ha mp ar a n d istr ict, 6 in Sita mar chi a nd o ther 2 4 d ea th
had b ee n r ep o r ted fr o m Dar b han ga, S
up ual,
Sar an, La k hisar ai, Ma d h ub an i , W est Cha mp ar an, Ar ar ia an d Sheo
har d istr ict s.

Hu ge d a mage was ca used to the

p r o p er ty and the li ves o f the p eo p le in no r th I nd ia.

F ig ure: 4 . Seis mic zo ne s o f India a nd

Nepa l.

Ap r il 2 5
q uake

le ft 8 , 6 9 9 p eo p le d ea d, 22 , 2
20 p eo p le injur ed and flatte ned

tho u sand s o f b uild in gs

b esid es d estro yi n g wh o le vill ages in af fec ted ar ea . I n Ne p al,
Over 5 , 0 0 , 0 0 0 ho uses wer e d es tr o yed and 2 ,
6 9 , 0 00 wer e d a maged
by

t he

ea r thq ua kes

a nd

h
und r ed s

of

tho u sand s

of

p eo p le

wer e

st ill

sta yi n g

in

te mp o r ar y

shelter s.

Mo r e tha n 8 ,
6 4 , 0 0 0 af fec ted p eo p le, who

lived i n r e mo te mo unta ino us ar ea ,

h ave

lo st their r elati ve s
and ho u ses. ( UN r ep o r t)

A Dev ast ati ng Disast er: ACase Study of Nepal Eart hquake and It sI mpact
on Human Bei ngs

DOI : 1 0 . 9 79 0 /08 3 7
-
2 0 75
2
83 4

www. io sr j o ur nals.o r g
33

| P age

Ta ble: 1

Nepa l Ea rt hqua ke s And Af t er sho c ks

( AP RI L 2 5 ,
2 0 15 O NWO RDS)

Da t e

La t i t u d e

Lon gi t ud e

Dep t h

(i n

k m)

M a gni tud e

on

R i cht er

Sc a le

R egi on

2 5/ 04/ 201 5

2 8 °6 ´

84
°3
6
´

10

7 .9

Nep a l
2 5/ 04/ 201 5

28°
0
´

85
°42 ´

10

5 .5

Nep a l

2 5/ 04/ 201 5

2 8 °6 ´

8 4 °48 ´

10

6 .6

Nep a l

2 5/ 04/ 201 5

2 8 °0 ´

8 5 °42 ´

10

5 .7

Nep a l

2 5/ 04/ 201 5

2 7 °48 ´

8 5 °36 ´
E

10

5 .0

Nep a l

2 5/ 04/ 201 5

2 7 °24 ´

8 5 °36 ´

10

4 .2

Nep a l

2 5/ 04/ 201 5

2 7 °18 ´

8 5 °6 ´

10

5 .7

Nep a l

2 5/ 04/ 201 5

2 8 °18 ´

8 7 °18 ´

10

5 .8

C hi na
-
Nep a l

b ord er
2 5/ 04/ 201 5

2 7 °42 ´

8 4 °54 ´

10

5 .6

Nep a l

2 6/ 04/ 201 5

2 7 °36 ´

8 5 °54 ´

10

6 .9

Nep a l

2 6/ 04/ 201 5

2 7 °42 ´

8 5 °48 ´

10

5 .0

Nep a l

2 6/ 04/ 201 5

2 7 °42 ´

8 5 °54 ´

E
06

4 .0

Nep a l

2 6/ 04/ 201

2 7 °48 ´

8 6 °0 ´

14

4 .6

Nep a l

2 7/ 04/ 201 5

2 8 °6 ´

8 4 °54 ´

05

3 .5

Nep a l

2 7/ 04/ 201 5

2 6 °42 ´

8 8 °6 ´

10

5 .1

Nep a l
-

In d i a

(West
B en ga l)

b ord er

regi on

3 0/ 04/ 201 5

2 7 °48 ´

8 5 °48 ´

49

3 .0

Nep a l

1 2/ 05/ 201 5

2 7 °42 ´

8 6 °0 ´

1 8. 5

7 .3

Nep a l

2 9/ 05/ 201 5

2 7 °36 ´

8 6 °6 ´

10

6 .2

Nep a l

1 6/ 05/ 201 5

2 7 °36 ´

N
8 6 °0 ´

28

3 .6

Nep a l

0 7/ 06/ 201 5

2 7 °36 ´

8 5 °54 ´

10

3 .5

Nep a l

2 8/ 06/ 201 5

2 6 °30 ´

9 0 °6 ´

10

5 .6

Kok ra j h a r,

Assam

So ur ce :

I nd ian Me teo r o logical Dep ar t me nt ( I MD )

At leas t 1 1 7 p eo p le d ied in N ep al and 1 7 p eo p le in I nd

ia a s a r e sul t o f t he ea r t hq ua ke

o f 1 2 Ma y a nd
ab o ut 2 , 5 00 p eo p le wer e inj ur ed .
T his ea r thq ua ke
B uild in gs a nd a p illar insid e t he S hahee d Mi nar in Ko l kata.
At Co llege s

o f No r th B e ngal Uni ver sit y

, o ver 1 1 0 0
stud e nts
had to wr i
te t heir exa mi natio n p ap er o n co llege gr o
und a fter the sec o nd q uake
.

A nu mb er o f o ld te mp les,

p ag o d as and chur che s in t he Kath mand u val le y

wer e r az ed .
Sever al te mp les
incl ud in g

Ma na ka ma na

T emp l e at

Go r kha
,

J anaki Ma nd ir

at

J anakp ur
;

Kast ha mand ap
, P anchtale te mp le,
B asantap ur D ur b ar , the
Dasa Avtar te mp le

a nd the
S hi va P ar vati te mp le wer e d e mo li she d
.

T he Ku mar i

T e mp le
and the T alej u B ha wa ni T e mp le p ar tially co llap sed
.

So me p o r tio n

o f the J a ya B age sh wa r i T emp le at

Gau sha la
,

P ashup ati nat h T emp le

,
S wya mb h u nath
,

B o ud ha nat h

St up a, Ratna Ma nd ir and

Ran i P o kh ar i

h
ad

b ee n d estro yed
.
T
he Char Nar a ya n Ma nd ir , th
e stat ue o f Yo g Nar e nd r a Ma lla
, the T alej u T emp le, th e Har i Sha nkar , U ma
Ma hes h war T emp le and the Ma chh ind r anat h T emp le i n B un ga mati wer e
d estro yed . I n T r ip ur esh war , the Kal
Mo chan Ghat, a te mp le i nsp i r ed b y Mu g hal ar ch itect ur e, wa s co mp
lete l y d estro yed a n d the nea r b y T r ip ur a
Su nd ar i a
lso s u ffer ed s ig ni fica nt d a ma ge.
I n B ha ktap ur , se ve r al mo n u men ts

a nd
T emp le
s wer e to tall y

d estro yed .

T he p o o r co mmu nities o f Nep al wer e mo st a f fec ted , who lo s t

their ho uses and p r o p er ties.

T he ke y r ea so n fo r t he
ver y hig h Nep alese ca sual ties wa s the
co n str
uc tio n o f

no n
-
se is micall y e n gi nee r ed b uild in gs .

T he U. S. Geo lo gical Sur ve y initial l y est i ma ted ec o no mic lo sses fr o

m
thi s q uake

at 9 p er ce nt to 5 0
p er ce nt o f gr o
ss d o me stic p r o d uct, wi th a n

esti mate

o f 3 5 per ce nt.

Ta ble: 2
M a j o r Ea rt hqua ke s In In dia n
Su b
-
Co ntinent T i ll J une, 2 0 1 5

Da t e

Ti me

Pla c e/ Ar ea

La t i t u d e

Lon gi t ud e

M a gni tud e on
R i cht er Sc a le

Dea t h Toll

Ju n e1 6 ,1 819

1 8 :45 IS T

B hu j (ka ch ch h )

2 3 ° N

7 1 ° E

8 .0

2 000

Ju n e1 2, 1 897

1 5 :30 IS T

Sh i llon g

2 6 ° N

9 1 ° E

8 .7

1 542

M a rch 4 , 190 5

0 1 :19 IS T

Ka n gra ( Hi mach a l Prad esh )

3 2 °0 ´3 6 ´´ N

7 6 °1 ´4 8 ´´ E

8 .5
1 9, 500

Janu a ry 1 5, 1 934

1 4 :13 IS T

B ih a r
-

Nep a lb oa rd er

2 6 °36 ´ N

8 6 °48 ´ E

8 .4

1 0, 700

Au gu st 15 , 195 0

1 9 :22 IS T

Aru n a c ha l Pra d esh

-

Assam
b ord er

28
°
3
0 ´ N

97°
42
´ E

8 .7

1 526

Janu a ry 2 6, 2 001

0 8 :50 IS T

B hu j ( Gu ja rat )

2 3 °24 ´ N

7 0 °16 ´4 8 ´´ E

7 .8

3 0, 000

Sep t emb er 18 ,
2 011

1 8 :10 IS T

Si kk i m

2 7 °43 ´2 2 ´´ N

8 8 °3 ´5 0 ´´ E

6 .8

1 18

Ap ri l 2 5 ,20 15

1 1 :41 IS T

Lu mj u n g, Nepa l

2 8 °6 ´

8 4 °36 ´

7 .9

> 89 00

M a y 1 2, 2 015

1 2 :35 IS T

Kod a ri , Nep a l

2 7 °42 ´

8 6 °0 ´

7 .3

> 12 1

Ju n e2 8,
2 015

0 6 :35 IS T

Assam

2 6 °30 ´
N

9 0 °6 ´

5 .6

So ur ce :
I nd ian Me teo r o lo gical Dep ar tme nt ( I MD )

A Dev ast ati ng Disast er: ACase Study of Nepal Eart hquake and It sI mpact
on Human Bei ngs

DOI : 1 0 . 9 79 0 /08 3 7
-
2 0 75
2
83 4

www. io sr j o ur nals.o r g
34

| P age

IX.

Rcc omendati ons

1.

Dur in g ea r t hq ua ke, yo u s ho ul d
r un to war d s sa fe

p lace
li ke an o p en ar ea

a wa y fr o m b ui ld ing s, elec tr icit y

wir e s, fla m mab le inp uts, etc.

2.

I f yo u ar e i n
a
mo v in g ca r d ur i ng ea r t hq ua ke, yo u sho uld
sto p

the ca r as q uickl y as p o ssib l e.

3.

I f yo u ar e sta yi ng

i nd o o r s, yo u sho uld take s helter u nd

er a hea v y a nd har d f ur ni tur e

n a mel y d es k, tab le,

b ench, etc.

4.

Yo u sho uld

no t r u n

t hr o ug h o r nea r the b uild i

n gs; a l wa ys sta y in o p en sp ac e unt il the tr e m o r sto p .

5.

Yo u sho uld co nstr uct seis m icall y en gi nee r ed ( ea r thq uak e r

esistant d esi g n) b uild in gs o r light weig h t
b uild in gs wi th li g hter r o o fs in hig hl y ea r thq uake p r o ne ar ea s.

X.

Findi ngs

Fro m the ab o ve co mp r ehe n siv e

stud y I have as se mb led se ve r al i mp o r tant a sp ec ts, wh ic h ar e no
ted b elo w
-

1.

Lo ss o f ma n y h u man a nd ca ttl e lives.

2.

Da ma ge and d estructio n o f man y hu ma n co nstr uctio n s, na me l y b u ild

in gs, r o ad s o r high wa ys, b r id ges,
te mp les, UNE SCO wo r ld her it age site s, to wns a nd
vil lage s.

3.

E ar thq uake cr ea te s

land s lid es wh ic h ma y
b lo ck t he hi g h wa ys, r iver cha nnel s, etc.

4.

E ar thq uake cr ate s d if fer ent t y p es o f avala nche s whic h ma y kill h u

nd r ed s o f cli mb er s,
tr e k
ker s and Nep ali
guid e s

at the E ver est b ase ca m p in Nep al.

5.
E ar thq uake s and co
nti nuo us after s ho ck s d estro yed the ci vil str uc tur es killi n g tho u
san d s o f p eo p le and
inj ur ed o ver t we nt y
-
t wo t ho u s and p eo p le in Nep al and no r th er n I nd ia.

XI.

Concl usi ons

An

ea r thq uake ca n no t b e p r evented o r

ac cur atel y

p r ed icted , b ut t
her e ar e so me fo r e war nin g
sig n o f a

co min g

tr e mo r
, and t her e ar e
var io u s

s yste m b ei n g d eve lo p ed and in use to r ed u

ce t he d a ma ge fr o m thi s
d isaster
. Ho we ver , no
p er fec t

techn iq ues ha ve

b ee n d eve l o p ed to pr ed ict the

tr e mo r

till d ate. Ma ki ng
e xac t

p r ed ict
io n

ab o ut the o cc ur r enc e o f a

tr e mo r

i n a
n

ar ea

a nd ti me
is stil l a
tr ick y

p r o
p o sitio n. T he seis mo lo gist s ar e
mo r e a nd mo r e

co nce ntr ati ng o n the as

p ec t
o f ea r thq ua ke fo r ec asti ng. W he n

we

wo uld b e
ab le to p r ed ict

o f
ea r thq ua kes
ac c ur atel y
o n t he b asis o f a ni mal b eha vio r o r o ther u nu sua l

p he no me na,
it w
o uld save ma n y li ves
and p r o p er ty d a mage s
.

Acknow l edgem ent

I wo uld li ke to exp r ess my gr atit ud e and since r e t han ks to the p r

o fesso r Late S ub ha s hr anj an B asu,
fo r mer p r o fes so r o f Dep ar t me nt o f Geo gr ap h y, RB U and S p ec
ial tha n ks to
Mis s
Mo u mi ta Du tta, Mr . Sup r i ya
Deb nath a nd

Mr .
Kr ish nend u B er a

fo r their kind ad vice a nd su gge stio ns to war d s p r ep ar atio n o f thi

s p ap er .

Ref erence s

[ 1].

M . Hu sain , Geogra p h y of In d i a , New Delh i : Ta t a Mc Gra w Hi l l Ed

uc a ti on Pri va t e Li mi t ed , 3
rd

edi ti on, 2 012 .

[ 2].

D. R . Kh
u lla r, In d i a

A C omp reh en sive Ge ogra p h y, Ne w De lh i : Ka l ya n i Pu b li sh ers,2

006 .
[ 3].

Go vt . of In d i a : In d i a M et eorolo gi c a l Dep a rt men t, 2 015 .

[ 4].

h tt p ://
www. g oog l e. c om

[ 5].

1 98 5.

[ 6].

S. Sin gh , Geom orp h olog y, Al la h a ba d : Pra ya g Pu st ak B ha ba n, 1

998 .

[ 7].

D.

Na nd y,

B a su , R ., Bh ad u ri , S.,
Ko lk a t a : Progressi ve Pu b li sh ers,

2 00 7
, pp
. 15
-
23 .

[ 8].

A. K. Gh o

Pu b li sh ers,2 00 7.