Earthquake Hazard and Risk Reduction on the Indian Subcontinent

The EQRisk project is as a multi-disciplinary research project in the fields of earthquake seismology and engineering with a strong focus on collaboration between Indian, Bhutanese and Norwegian institutions. The project is subdivided into four thematic work packages, while the outcomes of each work package will be merged together at the end with the overall goal of contributing to earthquake risk reduction on the Indian subcontinent. The projects work areas and results are subdivided into four groups: 1. Seismic hazard assessment: Works on seismic hazard computation will lead to probabilistic seismic hazard maps of the three test bed regions, i.e. Northeast India including Bhutan, Peninsular India, and Northern India. These maps could be used for elaborating on new zonation maps as e.g. provided in national seismic building codes. 2. Soil amplification studies: Various site response estimation techniques are tested and will contribute to setting up and improve existing soil models for the various test beds where detailed damage and loss estimation studies are conducted. 3. Topographic amplification: The complex topic of topographic amplification of seismic ground motion is tackled in various ways: empirically (state-of-the-art study and expert judgment on applicable amplification functions for the various test beds), analytically (through modelling and dynamic analysis of topographic features), and instrumentally (through the instrumentation of selected slopes in Northern India and the analysis of recorded ground motion data). The outcomes of these three fields are used for creating a next generation risk assessment procedure that is addressing both soil and topographic site amplification. 4. Earthquake vulnerability, damage and loss assessment: Holistic loss assessment studies are conducted for selected test bed cities in the three target regions, i.e. Guwahati (Assam), Bangalore (Karnataka), Nainital and Mussoorie (both Uttarakhand). In addition to the outcomes of the previous mentioned work areas, these studies require thorough building classification schemes, building stock inventories as well as reliable vulnerability estimates that are collected and generated in the course of the project, respectively. Scientific findings and activities are documented in a number of publications and technical reports as well as at international conferences and symposia. Especially in the second half of the project, a strong focus was laid on dissemination activities, i.e. the organization and conduct of workshops and training programs for students, faculty members as well as practicing engineers and architects on various topics related to the projects and its outcomes. So far, numerous of these dissemination activities have been conducted in various Indian cities (New Delhi, Guwahati, Bangalore, Nagpur, Roorkee) often with great interest from the audience and the public.

The project represents an extension as well as expansion of an earlier collaboration project funded by the Royal Norwegian Embassy to India (New Delhi) to additional earthquake-prone regions on the Indian subcontinent. The project is therefore subdivided into three regional chapters: Chapter 1 - Northeast Indian and Bhutan: NORSAR, Assam Engineering College (AEC, Guwahati), Geological Survey of Bhutan (DGM, Thimphu), Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee (IITR, Roorkee) Chapter 2 - Peninsular India: NOR SAR, CSIR Centre for Mathematical Modelling and Computer Simulation (C-MMACS, Bangalore) Chapter 3 - Northern India: NORSAR, Norwegian Geotechnical Institute (NGI, Oslo), Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee (IITR, Roorkee), Wadia Institute of Himalayan Geology (WIHG, Dehradun) While NORSAR will steer the separate chapters and will serve as a connection link between the different partners, collaborations between these partners on selected fields of interest are established during the project duration t hat will continue to grow long after the proposed project terminates. In order to establish these contacts, to reawaken existing contacts and to maintain/sustain the direct interaction, annual workshops with participants from all project institutions wil l be organized. These workshops will be a combination of a 1-day project meeting in order to present, discuss and exchange project results as well as to plan joint efforts in the target regions, and a 2-day training course for MSc and PhD students or loca l professionals on various topics (e.g. seismic hazard assessment, basics of earthquake engineering, earthquake-resistant design, building codes, vulnerability assessment, hospital and school vulnerability, seismic risk and loss). In addition to the techn ical partners, representatives from governmental institutions will be involved to enhance practical impact, to give technical recommendations and to conduct activities in line with political strategies.