NLFC is aimed at landslide hazard mitigation in India and will in due course issue early warning bulletins for all landslide-prone states, operationalizing the regional Landslide Early Warning System (LEWS) nationwide by 2030.

Other Initiatives

• Bhusanket Web Portal: Will facilitate dissemination of relevant information on landslide hazards, initiating short-range and medium-range landslide forecasting.
• Bhooskhalan Mobile App: Quick dissemination of daily landslide forecasts.

About Landslides

• Landslides, a type of mass wasting, is defined as the rapid movement of a mass of rock, debris, or earth down a slope.
• India’s Vulnerability: Approximately 0.42 million sq. km (12.6% of land area), excluding snow covered area, is prone to landslide hazard.
  • Himalayas and Western Ghats are particularly susceptible to landslides due to hilly topography and heavy rainfall. 
• Causes of landslides
  • Natural: Heavy rainfall, undercutting of slopes due to flooding or excavation, earthquakes, snowmelt etc. 
  • Anthropogenic: Overgrazing by cattle, soil erosion due to loss of vegetation, terrain cutting and filling, excessive development etc. 
• Effects of landslides: 
  • Loss of life and infrastructure, cultivable land etc.
  • Disruption of traffic and isolation of habitations in hilly regions.
  • Floods due to diversion of river courses, channel blockages or reducing effectiveness of dams by adding silt load.