'Nepal quake triggered 4,312 landslides'

New Delhi, May 16: Almost a year after the devastating 7.8 magnitude earthquake hit the Himalayan tion of Nepal, a new intertiol report says a staggering 4,312 landslides were triggered by the temblor and aftershocks. It says the major destruction by the landslides was of newly-developed settlements, and the total loss and damage was estimated at $7 billion. The report “Impact of Nepal’s 2015 Gorkha Earthquake-Induced Geohazards” says the lives of eight million people, almost one-third of Nepal’s population, were impacted. But the damage due to landslides and glacier lake floods was less than anticipated. Supported by Skoll Global Threats Fund, the Kathmandu-headquartered Intertiol Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD), along with scientists from the US, Europe and the region prepared the report by mapping the landslides using satellite images, aerial surveys and field visits. In Nepal, home to more than one-third of the Himalayan range, the damage by the quake was devastating, compared to the Tibet Autonomous Region in Chi or India and Bangladesh. Within Nepal, more than 8,800 people died, 22,000 were injured and 100,000 displaced. The earthquake on April 25, 2015, pushed an additiol 2.5 to 3.5 percent of the Nepalese population into poverty in 2015-16, the researchers wrote in their 36-page report that aims to improve the magement of geohazards. Scientists have discovered that there was major destruction to the newly-developed human settlements compared to older ones. These settlements were along the Pasang Lamu highway in the Trishuli valley and Kodari highway in the Bhotekoshi and Sunkoshi valleys. Tatopani village, bordering Chi, too was hit by rock falls.   (IANS)

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