“Understanding fragility of Himalayas is need of the times”

my uttarakhand news BureauDehradun, 19 Jan: Experts suggested measures for safe and balanced development in hill areas at Graphic Era, here, today.
Graphic Era Deemed University organised a seminar on engineering in hill areas according to Indian standards. Vice-Chancellor Dr Narpinder Singh said that challenges in hill regions include unstable environments, changing climatic conditions, and limited accessibility. “As an educational institution, it is our responsibility to find solutions to these challenges and educate our youth in the direction of safe and balanced hill area development,” he asserted.
Director, Bureau of Indian Standards, Dehradun, Saurabh Tiwari said that the development of hill areas is as important as that of the plains. Considering recent natural calamities, understanding the fragility of hill areas has become a necessity. Following standards during construction can help cope with these challenges.
Expert Dr Anbalagan Rathinam said that the Himalayan region is extremely sensitive to geological instability, heavy rainfall, flash floods, and landslides. He added that construction activities are rapidly increasing but, if these are carried out without understanding, the actual ground conditions, hill instability rises and issues like landslides become even more severe.
Over 100 government officials and experts participated in this seminar. Eight technical sessions were conducted, covering topics such as slope stability modelling, landslide early warning systems, site investigation techniques, Himalayan hazards in changing climatic scenarios, and geosynthetics for hill excavation.
This seminar was jointly organised by Graphic Era Deemed University and the Bureau of Indian Standards. The programme was attended by Nakkala Praveen Sai, Engineer Minimol Korulla, BIS Nodal Officer Dr. Brijesh Prasad, along with other teachers and students.