Question : Earthquake Vulnerability

(a) whether 95 per cent of the 304 million households in India are vulnerable to earthquake in different degrees;

(b) whether lack of information about earthquake vulnerability has resulted in lack of planning in constructing earthquake resistant houses;

(c) if so, the details thereof and the corrective steps taken by the Government in this regard;

(d) whether the National Disaster Management Authority and the Union Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation Ministry have prepared maps listing earthquake vulnerability of localities right down to the block level;

(e) if so, the details thereof;

(f) the advantages that the people will get out of these maps along with the other steps taken by the Government to make the people aware of the materials to be used in building houses to avoid earthquake disaster; and

(g) whether there is any proposal to introduce insurance policy for rehabilitation of victims of earthquakes and if so, the details thereof?

MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF HOME AFFAIRS
(SHRI KIREN RIJIJU)


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(a) to (g) Bureau of Indian Standards has mapped the country with seismic zones, essentially based on seismicity of the region, maximum intensities experienced in the past and the seismo-tectonics of the region concerned. According to the latest version of this classification of Bureau of Indian Standards [IS 1893 (Part I):2002], Ministry of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation, 58.6 percent of areas in the country falls under earthquake zones, which is grouped into four seismic zones viz. Zone- II (41.4% areas), III (30.4% areas), IV (17.3% areas) and V (10.9% areas). Of these, Zone V is seismically the most prone region, while zone II is the least.
Guidelines have been published by the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS), Building Materials & Technology Promotion Council (BMTPC), Housing and Urban Development Corporation (HUDCO) and National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) for the design and construction of earthquake resistant structures to minimize the loss of life and damage to property caused by earthquakes. These guidelines are in wide circulation amongst the public and the administrative authorities responsible for the design and construction of earthquake resistant structures in earthquake prone areas.
As part of pre-disaster preparedness measure, NDMA with the technical assistance of BMTPC, has brought out upgraded Earthquake Hazard Maps and Atlas for the Country upto Districts level with sub-district boundary. The updated Earthquake Hazard Maps and Atlases are containing the details of earthquake hazard zoning maps up to district level with sub-division boundary, Seismo
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Tectonic, housing & population data, Railway Lines, Golden Expressway & National Highway and Rivers & Water-body. The maps and atlas have been distributed to all States/ UTs during July 2016.
Government of India and other state Disaster Management Authorities, have also taken up various initiatives to educate and bring awareness amongst general public and school children on the general aspects of earthquakes, their impacts and measures to mitigate losses caused by them.
With regard to rehabilitation, it is mentioned that this Ministry has no proposal under consideration to introduce insurance policy for rehabilitation of victims of earthquake. The concerned State Governments provide assistance for rehabilitation from their Plan/ own resources, to the families affected due to natural calamities including earthquake, and also based on the availability of Government land as per their existing land policy.


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