These Are The 38 Earthquake Prone Cities In India. Do You Live In One Of Them?

As per Geographical statistics, almost 54% of the land in India is vulnerable to earthquakes.

The earthquake in Nepal not only affected it’s cities – Kathmandu being the worst hit, the tremors were also felt in parts of India such as Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Delhi etc. According to government data, Srinagar and Guwahati  are the two Indian cities at the highest risk of being struck by an earthquake.

 

Cities that are prone to earthquakes can be classified into zones based on the intensity of earthquakes.

The seismic zones are Zone II, III(moderate intensity zone), IV(very severe intensity zone) and V(very severe intensity zone).

 

Here’s an interactive map of earthquake prone areas in India. The larger the red dot, higher is the probability

[cjtoolbox name=’Earthquake prone’ ] [/cjtoolbox]

Even though the areas of high seismic activity are known and plate activity is monitored, it is still impossible to predict earthquakes.

 

The cities in zone V are highly prone to earthquakes and are associated with the highest level of seismicity,while the cities in zone II are associated with the lowest level of seismicity.

– Zone V are: Guwahati (Assam) ,  Srinagar (Jammu and Kashmir)

– Zone IV are: Delhi, Mumbai (Maharashtra)

– Zone III: Chennai (Tamil Nadu)

Chennai was formerly classified into zone II, but now is a part of zone III.

 

Gujarat and Uttar Pradesh appear to be the most vulnerable states, with six cities each in earthquake-prone zones. Both the states have one city each under zone IV and five cities under zone III. Maharashtra is next with four cities in zone III.

According to a report from the Center for Research on Epidemiology of Disasters, China, United States, Indonesia, Philippines and India were among the five countries world-wide, most frequently hit by natural disasters over the last decade.

Fact Sources: Business Standard, India Today