Historical Developments in India Towards Seismic Safety and Lessons for Future

Abstract eng:
The Indian subcontinent has been the setting for some of the largest earthquakes of the world. The subcontinent has also contributed to many of the early developments in science and engineering of earthquakes. For example, after the earthquakes of 1897 and 1935, some very effective new technologies emerged locally for house construction that have stood the test of time. However, notwithstanding these early developments, the present scenario is quite alarming as numerous buildings continue to collapse in earthquakes in India due to use of vulnerable building typologies and lack of building code enforcement. The paper outlines some historical developments and their impact on the risk reduction agenda. It shows that tremendous progress has been made in recent years towards awareness and capacity building, but this remains woefully inadequate considering the aspirations of a country striving to be a world leader economically and otherwise. The seismic risk reduction work will gain tremendously if we shift some of the attention from "earthquakes" to the "construction". A robust enforcement system is needed for constructions in the formal sector, and new building typologies must be developed that are inherently better against earthquakes. The former is really an issue of governance, while the latter requires massive R&D initiative towards "engineering for earthquakes" and a vibrant communication and disseminations system.

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