Geological Survey of India is currently testing Regional Landslide Early Warning System in the Darjeeling district, West Bengal and in the Nilgiris district, Tamil Nadu. This system will be tested in both these locations for a few monsoon years for validation before making it operational. This information has recently been posted by Shri Prahlad Joshi, the Union Minister in-charge of Coal and Mines, in his social media accounts.
Dr Saibal Ghosh, Director GHRM Division Geological Survey of India said that, “Like some other developed countries, where such type of regional landslide early warning model is operational, India will also carry out extensive ground validation and testing of the LEWS models for a few monsoon years and including application in some other landslide prone States before making it operational. GSI has developed this technology in an ongoing collaborative international research program- LANDSLIP after working with a large group of Indian and European researchers from Landscape, Climate and Social dynamics fields”
In India, the mountainous and hilly areas are spread in 16 States and in 2 Union Territories in the Himalayan region, sub-Himalayan parts of Northeast India and in Western Ghats which are landslide prone. This landslide prone area comprises about 12.6% of Indian landmass (4.2 lakh square km) in more than 170 districts.