With a view to address the issue of unsafe buildings, the Delhi Development Authority on Tuesday decided to set up a separate unit to work out systems for retrofitting or rebuilding buildings considered vulnerable during earthquakes. At the Authority meeting held on Tuesday, Delhi Lt Governor and DDA chairman Tejendra Khanna suggested that the DDA, in public interest and due to Delhi being in seismic zone, should address the issues of unsafe buildings. “After deliberations, it was decided that a separate unit should be created within the DDA, for the purpose.

New Delhi: An estimated 70% of buildings in east Delhi are prone to damage in an earthquake, lieutenant governor Tejendra Khanna said on Thursday. “The buildings should be identified and retrofitted on a priority basis. Buildings where retrofitting is not possible should be rebuilt,” Khanna said at a seminar on reducing earthquake risks.

A survey of East Delhi has revealed the area’s vulnerability to damage from earthquakes, due to unauthorised construction and lack of adherence to norms.
The survey was carried out by the National Institute of Disaster Management with the help of MCD engineers, who were trained for the task. A representative sample survey of 1 per cent of the total buildings (10,000 structures) was carried out by means of Rapid Visual Screening in all the 64 wards of MCD. The survey covered the entire area of East Delhi, spread over 124 sq kilometres.

A 5.6 magnitude earthquake killed seven people in eastern Turkey late Wednesday, less than three weeks after a massive quake killed more than 600 in the same area, a government disaster management centre said.

Twenty-three people were found alive from the wreckage and seven lost their lives during the quake, according to the Prime Ministry Disaster and Emergency Management Presidency.

Concrete buildings in city adding to threat
Shillong: Last month’s devastating earthquake, which shook Sikkim and the whole of North East and north India, has raised many questions amongst the people of the State over construction of concrete houses and buildings.

Aizawl/Agartala, Sep 23 (IANS): Authorities in Mizoram and Tripura, given the high vulnerability of India's mountainous northeast to earthquakes, are becoming stricter in enforcing official guidelines on the construction of concrete houses and structures.

The Geological Survey of India had earlier notified that the northeastern region could experience a devastating earthquake as the region, according to seismologists, falls in Zone V, the sixth worst quake-prone belt in the world.

With six more deaths reported from several areas today, the toll in the powerful earthquake rose to eight in Bihar, official sources said.
While Darbhanga accounted for four deaths, one each was killed in Nawada, Nalanda, Bhagalpur and Sheorhar districts.

LUCKNOW: The Sunday earthquake, which jolted almost the entire north India, has once again raised questions on the safety aspect of the city's multi-storied buildings.

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