Morphometric analysis and landslide zonation mapping: a case study from Kumaon division of Uttarakhand
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Date
2022-09
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G. B. Pant University of Agriculture and Technology, Pantnagar
Abstract
The present study consists of morphometric analysis and preparation of the
Landslide Zonation Map for the western Mid-Himalayan region in the Kumaon division of
Uttarakhand. The study area i.e., the Kwarab-Khairna region is located in the Almora and
Nainital districts of Uttarakhand, with a spatial extent from latitude 29°40ʹ55ʺ N to
29°22ʹ41ʺ N and longitude 79°24ʹ58ʺ E to 79°39ʹ21ʺ E, respectively. The morphometric
analysis suggests that the area has an elongated shape with a very coarse drainage texture
and subsoil with high permeability, dense vegetation cover and low relief. The drainage
area is under the mature development stage with geologic structures having very little
impact on the stream network. In the present work, a multi-criteria analysis technique is
used for landslide zonation mapping. Thematic maps of different factors, namely slope,
aspect, elevation, lineament density, drainage density, rainfall, geology, soil and land
use/land cover were prepared and integrated into the GIS platform for the landslide
zonation. The analytic hierarchy process was used to determine the weight values for each
considered factor. The sub-classes of each thematic map were further rated on a scale from
0 to 9. The landslide zonation map of the Kwarab-Khairna region was produced using the
weighted overlay technique. The zonation map divides the area into four zones, namely
low, moderate, high and very high. The findings demonstrate that the majority of the area
belongs to the moderate landslide zonation class. A significant finding emerged from the
study that some of the important locations within the study area such as Khairna,
Garampani, Suyalbadi, Suyalgaon, Kagdighat, Kainchi Dham and the NH connecting
Almora-Nainital fall under the category of high and very high landslide zones.