Only One Dist In Odisha Prone To Landslides, 14 At Risk Of Earthquake: Suresh Pujar

Bhubaneswar: Gajapati is the only landslide-prone district in Odisha, Disaster Management Minister Suresh Pujari told the House on Thursday.

Replying to a query by Lakshmipur MLA Pabitra Saunta, Pujari said 129 places highly susceptible to landslides have been identified in the southern district. “To reduce landslide incidents, coordination meetings are being regularly held between various departments, IMD and Coimbatore-based Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham’s World Centre of Excellence on Landslide. An agreement has also been signed between the Odisha State Disaster Management Authority (OSDMA) and Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham to undertake a survey in the district,” he said.

Notably, severe cyclone Titli in October 2018 had triggered massive landslides in Gajapati, resulting in the destruction of 20 villages and loss of over 4o lives. A single landslide killed 12 people, including five children, who had sought refuge in a cave on a mountain at Barghara village in the district. Substantial damage to houses also led to the displacement of around 9,100 families.

Earlier this year, a team of seven experts from Coimbatore-based centre visited Gajapati district to conduct a comprehensive study on the causes of landslides and potential mitigation measures, including setting up a user-friendly landslide early warning system (EWS).

Pujari further informed about State Emergency Operation Centre (SEOC), which is working towards disaster management and early weather forecast in Odisha.

Replying to another question by the Congress legislator, the Minister said that 14 districts in the state are at risk of earthquake. These districts – Jagatsinghpur, Kendrapada, Puri, Khurda, Cuttack, Jajpur, Dhenkanal, Angul, Sambalpur, Jharsuguda, Sundargarh, Bargarh, Balasore and Mayurbhanj – fall under moderately seismic-prone areas (zone III), he added.