kavalappara landslide case study

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21 August 2019

The Kavalappara landslide in the western Ghats of India

Posted by Dave Petley

At 7:30 pm on 8th August 2019 the large the Kavalappara landslide in Wayanad, part of the western Ghats in Kerala, India buried a small community. Whilst rescue operations continue, it has been reported that 46 bodies have been recovered from the debris, whilst it is believed that a further 13 people were killed. The landslide was triggered by a period of intense monsoon rainfall. The Indian Express has some details about the precipitation event that initiated the landslide :

Malappuram meteorological subdivision got 189.4 mm rain from August 1 to August 7, 66% more than the normal 114.3 mm. On August 8, the Nilambur rain gauge station, the one nearest to Kavalappara, recorded the highest rainfall of that day in Kerala.

Indian Express also has this image of the landslide, which appears to have been both large and mobile:-

The 8th August 2019 The Kavalappara landslide, which killed 59 people. Image via the Indian Express .

Meanwhile, t he Deccan Chronicle has a different perspective on the landslide:-

The 8th August 2019 Kavalappara landslide in the Western Ghats of India. Image via the Deccan Chronicle .

The deep red soils indicate a high degree of weathering. The upper quarter of the landslide source appears to have exposed bedrock, perhaps suggesting that the initial failure occurred on the interface between weathered and intact rock. This portion of the slide surface appears to be much steeper than the rest of the landslide source. The lower three-quarters of the landslide source appear to be situated in weathered soils or regolith. Note that the flow bifurcated into three streams, presumably controlled by the underlying topography. This has left an undisturbed island of trees, which is reminiscent of the Pingdi landslide in China that I highlighted yesterday . The other flow path has cut a separate track.

The heavy rainfall that triggered this landslide caused widespread damage. At Puthumala, also within Wayanad district, 17 people were killed when 53 houses, a mosque, a temple and a shop were buried by another large landslide.

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Thank you for the information

Landslide are being an unavoidable part these years in Kerala. In August 2020, Pettimudi-Rajamala, Idukki district of Western Ghats witnessed another massive landslide where more than 50 lives lost. Being a Geoscientist it’s our need to find out exact reasons and remedies to prevent it so that atleast we could save more lives. Expecting AGU’s kind attention on this regard.

The landslide actually took place in the Malappuram District of Kerala, not Wayanad District.

Where is kavalappara ? Malappuram or wayanad

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The tale of three landslides in the Western Ghats, India: lessons to be learnt

R. S. Ajin 1 ,
D. Nandakumar 2 ,
A. Rajaneesh 3 ,
T. Oommen 4 ,
Yunus P. Ali 5 &
K. S. Sajinkumar 3

Geoenvironmental Disasters volume 9 , Article number: 16 ( 2022 ) Cite this article

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In recent years, landslides have become a typical monsoon calamity in the Western Ghats region of Kerala, India. In addition to property damage, heavy rainfall (36% above normal) and multiple landslides (4728) killed 48 people in 2018. This tendency continued throughout the monsoon seasons of 2019, 2020, and 2021, resulting in the deaths of over 100 people. Anomalous precipitation is ascribed to the frequent development of low-pressure in the surrounding oceans. Using ground real data and satellite imagery, we evaluated the features of three large landslides in the state of Kerala, which occurred during the monsoon season of 2021. Our investigation found that the Kokkayar landslide was triggered by anthropogenic-related agricultural activities, the Plappally landslide by geomorphic and tectonic processes as well as human involvement, and the Kavali landslide by forest fragmentation with dense vegetation on thin soil. The triggering mechanism for all three of these landslides, however, is the intense rainfall of 266 mm in less than 24 h. Thus, an accurate and precise forecast of rainfall can be used to define a threshold for an early warning, which will be vital for saving lives.

Introduction

Catastrophic landslides have become a common monsoonal phenomenon in India’s southwest state of Kerala, which is located in the foothills of the prominent mountain chain, the Western Ghats. The anomalous rainfall of 2018, which was about 36% more than the normal rainfall (Vishnu et al. 2019 ), triggered 4728 landslides (Hao et al. 2020 ) and killed 48 people. These landslides occurred in a single storm-event i.e., 16th August 2018. The following years saw further landslides, with the monsoon season of 2019 witnessing disastrous landslides such as the one at Puthumala, which killed 17 people, and the Kavalappara, which killed another 59 people (Sajinkumar and Oommen 2020 ; Wadhawan et al. 2020 ). Both these landslides occurred on 8th August 2019. The Pettimudi landslide of 6th August 2020 was the most tragic one that killed 70 people and devastated several hutments in a tea plantation region (Achu et al. 2021 ; Sajinkumar and Oommen 2021 ). Year 2021 also experienced cataclysmic landslides on 16th October with the most disastrous ones being at Kokkayar in Idukki district and Plappally and Kavali, near Koottickal in Kottayam district. All these devastating landslides that occurred since 2018 showed an uneven geographic distribution (Fig. 1 a, b), pointing to the possibility that many parts of the Western Ghats are susceptible to landslides, though these landslides are located along the same valley (Fig. 1 c). In this study, we narrate the ground real data and interpretation of high-resolution remotely sensed images of the three landslides- Kokkayar, Plappally and Kavali (Fig. 2 , a, b, c) that occurred in 2021. We also employed ethnographic techniques, such as in-depth interviews with elderly impacted individuals, to learn about their shared experiences. These three landslides are amongst the tens of landslides in the vicinity of the study area (Fig. 3 ). The reason for selecting these three landslides is because of their catastrophic nature resulting in many human casualties. We believe that the narrative of these three landslides applies to other landslides that occurred in the immediate vicinity of this area.

(Source: Google Earth) ( b ) Study area with elevation map draped over hill shade map showing major landslides since 2018 (Elevation data is ALOS PALSAR) ( c ) Google Earth image showing the spatial distribution of these three landslides along a valley

Location map ( a ) South India

Field photos of ( a ) Kokkayar landslide ( b ) Plappally landslide ( c ) Kavali landslide

A distant view of the hills in the study area showing several landslides

Site and situation of the landslides

Kokkayar landslide.

Kokkayar landslide (9°34′21''N; 76°53′13''E) of Peermade taluk in the Idukki district of Kerala has killed seven people and completely destroyed seven houses. The dimension of this landslide is 500 m (length) × 40 m (avg. width) × 1 m (avg. thickness). Rubber plantations predominantly occupy the area with intermittent clusters of mixed vegetation. The area is utilized for agriculture through terrace cultivation with the cut slope protected by rubble masonry wall. Rain pits were constructed on this slope. Houses are constructed by the cut and fill method but without any support in the cut slope. Most of the houses have dug wells and the depth to water level is shallow (< 2 m) whereas during the landslide these were found overflowing (as per local witness), pointing to the fully saturated column of soil. Numerous springs spout from this area (Fig. 4 a). This spouting phenomenon existed before landslides because dwellings have drains to flush away storm water (Fig. 4 b). These observations indicate that a seasonal first and/or second-order stream flows through this area, which might have been modified during the course of agriculture and/or habitation. A few fresh gullies have been formed, to which water is now confined.

a Spouting of spring at Kokkayar landslide ( b ) A demolished house having provisions for draining storm water ( c ) A highly-weathered joint in the country hornblende biotite gneiss ( d ) Soil profile showing dislodged material, lateritic soil, saprock and weathered bedrock

The in-depth interviews with the local people revealed that the vegetation, mainly rubber trees were clear-felled after slaughter tapping a few years prior to the event. Contour bunding and rain-pits were made prior to replanting the rubber saplings. These interventions seem to have taken place ignoring the natural hydrological requirement of letting the first/second order streams to have its free flow channels. Such interventions may have contributed to destabilizing of soil on the slopes.

The area is characterized by outcrops of hornblende biotite gneiss. The general trend of this foliated rock is 173°/35 W. The preponderance of feldspar in this rock and its subsequent alteration through weathering has resulted in the formation of clay. The rock is highly jointed, and weathering is found to be extensive along these joints (Fig. 4 c). The crown of the landslide is occupied by bouldery outcrops of this rock with no soil cover. Hence, during monsoon, all the water in the crown part has surcharged the immediately downslope column of lateritic soil causing an increase in pore-water pressure. Near the flanks of the landslide, the soil profile shows dislodged soil followed by lateritic soil of 1 m thickness and another 1 m thick saprolite (Fig. 4 d). This is further followed by bedrock. The dislodged material was finally dumped into the Pullakayar, a tributary of Manimala River.

Plappally landslide

Plappally landslide (9°37′3''N; 76°52′21''E) in Kanjirapally taluk of Kottayam district has killed four people and demolished two buildings. This landslide of 500 m (length) × 20 (avg. width) × 1 m (avg. thickness) was initiated in a rubber plantation whereas its runout stretches through areas of different land use types. In the Google Earth image (before landslide), the upslope in which the landslide occurred is confined is a truncated spur and its right boundary is marked by a straight lower-order river course, indicating a lineament (Fig. 5 a). Due to the broader surface area of this spur, the run-off zone is more extensive. The storm water when crossing the barren rock outcrop, situated downslope, facilitates sudden surcharge to the thin veneer of soil lying immediately downslope. It is in this zone the recent landslide was initiated. The surcharge zone can be well seen in the high-resolution (3 m) False Colour Composite (FCC) of Planet Lab (Fig. 5 b). The truncated spur together with the bulged foothill suggests this as a paleo-landslide, within which the recent landslide occurred.

a Google Earth image showing a distant view of Plappally landslide showing a suspected lineament, remnants of paleolandslide and its associated truncated spur ( b ) 3 m resolution FCC of Planet Lab image showing the landslide runout and its surcharge area ( c ) Storm water gushing through the uprooted house location ( d ) The ruins of the devastated house, which was constructed along the course of a lower-order stream ( e ) Seepage along the joints of hornblende biotite gneiss

This landslide is also confined to a lower-order stream course. The two buildings, which were destroyed, were constructed precisely on the river course. Water gushes through this during the monsoon (Fig. 5 c), whereas it is dry during the non-monsoon season (Fig. 5 d) showing its seasonal nature. But seepage can be seen along the joints of the country rock, hornblende biotite gneiss (Fig. 5 e). Here again, in the upper slope, where the houses stood before the landslide, plantation with young rubber trees existed, which indicates a similar influencing factor like at Kokkayar.

Kavali landslide

Six people died and one house was demolished by the Kavali landslide, which is 250 m (length) × 15 (avg. width) × 2 m (avg. thickness) in dimension. Hornblende biotite gneiss is the country rock, which is highly weathered and jointed. The attitude of this highly foliated rock is 315°/80NE. Here too, spring water is tapped for domestic purposes. The destroyed house was constructed in a cut-slope, but the cut-slope is still retained after the landslide. The cut-slope profile exhibits lateritic soil, saprolite, and weathered bedrock. The area is characterized by thick vegetation when compared to the sparse vegetation in the adjacent area. This thick mixed vegetation with rubber plantation is the major crop, followed by nutmeg, arecanut, and teak. Google Earth image (Fig. 6 a) also revealed thick vegetation. A Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) map was created using the high-resolution Planet Lab image to understand the area’s land use. NDVI revealed that the landslide occurred in a densely vegetated area when compared to other areas consisting of a wide variety of land uses like moderate vegetation, grassland, barren outcrop, and built-up. Usually, landslides are less reported in densely vegetated areas (cf. Alcantara-Ayala et al. 2006 ; Reichenbach et al. 2014 ). In contrast to this, a recent study by Lan et al. ( 2020 ) suggests that a densely vegetated slope decreases its stability. This study has been concurred with by the recent findings of Hao et al. ( 2022 ) wherein most of the landslides that occurred in Kerala during 2018 are spatially associated with forest land. However, a closer look at Fig. 6 a, b reveals forest fragmentation and breaking-off of the contiguity of the forest canopy, creating scattered and fragmented forest islands. Studies reveal that such a process could compromise landscape integrity (Ramachandra and Kumar 2011 ; Batar et al. 2021 ).

a Google Earth image showing a distant view of Kavali landslide and forest fragmentation ( b ) NDVI of Kavali area depicting dense vegetation in landslide occurred area

The Western Ghats, especially its southern part encompassing the entire state of Kerala, witness landslides often during monsoon season. Since 2018, the noteworthy feature of the monsoon has been that it triggers landslides during the sporadic high-intensity rainfall (cf. Vishnu et al. 2019 , 2020 ; Yunus et al. 2021 ; Sajinkumar et al. 2022 ). Though several studies have been conducted in this region, and measures suggested were not adopted, we present here specific omnipresent reasons that facilitate landslides in this region.

Introspection of land use policy

The recent landslide susceptibility map of Kerala (cf. Sajinkumar and Oommen 2021 ; Escobar-Wolf et al. 2021 ) shows an area of 3300 and 2886 km 2 as highly and moderately susceptible to landslides, respectively. It will be an arduous task to implement stringent measures such as habitation- and construction-free zones in these areas. However, some of the landslide-facilitating practices that are common, may be inadvertently so, can be averted. Kerala is predominantly an agrarian state, and the general agricultural land use seen are cash crops, with rubber plantations occupying the midlands and tea, coffee and cardamom in the highlands. All the three landslides occurred in the midlands, especially where rubber plantation dominates the land use. The construction of rain pits is a common practice in almost all rubber estates. Major disturbance to the slope stability occurs when fully matured rubber trees are slaughtered after their life span of ~ 20 years, and fresh saplings are planted in a broad pit of 1 m 3 size. Rain pits are also dug here. The method of stubble mulching is not practiced here and large area of land will be disturbed when the trees are uprooted using machinery. Hence, avoiding rain pits, planting pits, and promoting stubble mulching practice will help reduce the probability of landslide occurrences. Avoiding rain pits and planting pits in susceptible landslide areas will help increase run-off rather than infiltration. In addition, all agricultural techniques on the hilly slope affects the lower-order drainage, by obstructing it with rubble-masonry walls, redirecting it to a more hazardous slope, or by constructing houses. These lower-order courses, except in thickly vegetated forest areas, are usually seasonal, and during monsoon season, the normal flow of water is thus disturbed by these practices. Hence, a stringent land use policy to avoid such practices in agricultural fields is a pressing requirement.

Rainfall- the sole triggering factor

As mentioned, these three landslides were also triggered by a sporadic-high intensity rainfall of > 266 mm in a single day (Fig. 7 ) but with a 5-day antecedent rainfall of only 109.9 mm. The comparatively higher rainfall of 48.8 (2nd October), 45.4 (8th October and 69.6 mm (11th October) might have saturated the soil column and the 16th October anomalous event was sufficient enough to trigger landslides. In order to limit the risk of rainfall-induced landslides, an accurate and exact rainfall forecast that allows for the issuance of early warnings based on the rainfall threshold of the area is essential (Weidner et al. 2018 ). The sparse density of rain gauges and manual operation methods make things difficult. For e.g., the rain gauge station nearest to these three landslides is Kanjirapally, approximately 10 km away from this landslide, which is grossly inadequate to capture the micro-climatic conditions of the susceptible areas. Moreover, this rain gauge station is a manual one with daily rainfall recording on the succeeding day at 8.30 am ( www.imd.gov.in ). Having automated rain gauges that report rain information near real-time will be critical for developing early warning systems.

Hyetograph of Kanjirappally rain gauge, which is the nearest to the landslide affected area. Note the prominent 266 mm rainfall on the landslide day

Soil thickness and soil-rock interface plane

The hilly area of the entire state of Kerala is characterized by a thin veneer of unconsolidated soil, resting above the massive Precambrian crystalline rock except for plateau regions like Munnar and Nelliyampathy (Sajinkumar and Anbazhagan 2015 ). Usually, the glide plane of the landslides will be the contact plane of these two litho-units (cf. Istiyanti et al. 2021 ). Thus, wherever the landslide occurs, the bedrock will be exposed, which can be seen in all these three landslides. Hence, along with the understanding of landslide susceptibility, the soil thickness of the area and the saturation capacity of that soil column have to be investigated. The contact between these two litho-units is stable in a plain or gentler slope (Fig. 8 a) whereas it will be in a meta-stable position when in a steep slope (cf. Getachew and Meten 2021 ; Puente-Sotomayor et al. 2021 ) (Fig. 8 b). This equilibrium will be lost when the soil column is saturated by water during the monsoon season (Fig. 8 c).

Sketch depicting the contact between unconsolidated soil and massive crystalline Precambrian rocks along the Western Ghats part of Kerala. ( a–c ) shows the different stages of stability of these two lithounits

The three landslides that occurred on 16th October 2021 are located in the same valley, and were triggered by a high-intensity rainfall of 266 mm in one day. These similarities are never the same when conditioning factors are analyzed. The steep slopes of the hilly regions where all three landslides occurred originally contained natural contiguous forests that may have held the thin soil and regolith layer together. The modern landscape, however, is dominated by human interventions such as the replacement of natural vegetation with plantations, highways, and human settlements. These measures facilitated the triggering of the landslides by a sudden storm of intense rainfall (cf. Lahai et al. 2021 ). However, a closer check using ground reality and satellite photographs revealed that the Kokkayar landslide was completely caused by humans, whereas the Plappally landslide was also affected by geomorphic and tectonic causes. The third site, the Kavali landslide, was caused by forest fragmentation on the forest island. Consequently, regardless of the contributing components, the common and vital feature to be researched is the rainfall dynamics, which can be converted into early warning systems, thereby saving countless lives.

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Acknowledgements

The authors thank Kerala State Disaster Management Authority (KSDMA) for facilitating fieldwork in these areas. Jobin Sebastian, a freelance photographer and paraglide trainer, is highly thanked for providing photos (Figs. 1 d and 2 ). The lab work was carried out at the Laboratory for Earth Resources Information System (LERIS) housed at the Department of Geology, University of Kerala. LERIS is a collaborative initiative of Indian Space Research Organization and University of Kerala.

The author declare that there is no funding in the manuscript.

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Sree Sankaracharya University of Sanskrit, Kalady, Kerala, 683574, India

D. Nandakumar

Department of Geology, University of Kerala, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, 695581, India

A. Rajaneesh & K. S. Sajinkumar

Department of Geological and Mining Engineering and Sciences, Michigan Technological University, Houghton, MI, 49931, USA

Indian Institute of Science Education and Research, Mohali, Punjab, 140306, India

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RSA-Field visit, manuscript writing DN-Field visit, manuscript writing AR-Data analysis, figure preparation TO-Data analysis, figure preparation, manuscript writing YPA-Data analysis, figure preparation, manuscript writing KSS-Field visit, Data analysis, figure preparation, manuscript writing, supervision

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Correspondence to K. S. Sajinkumar .

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Ajin, R.S., Nandakumar, D., Rajaneesh, A. et al. The tale of three landslides in the Western Ghats, India: lessons to be learnt. Geoenviron Disasters 9 , 16 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1186/s40677-022-00218-1

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DOI : https://doi.org/10.1186/s40677-022-00218-1

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Human interventions
Western Ghats

The Renaissance

Voice of Change

Post-Disaster Phase: The Kavalappara Landslide 2019

Authors – Akshara Sobhanan & Jilsha A B Issue No. 2, Volume : 3

About the authors – Akshara Sobhanan and Jilsha A B are postgraduates in MSW Disaster Management from Loyola College of Social Sciences, Trivandrum, Kerala.

A disaster causes significant disturbance to human society. Because a society that has experienced a calamity must deal with intersecting vulnerabilities that adversely influence its capacity to cope. It aggravates pre-existing vulnerabilities. As a result, recovery plays a critical part in creating a sustainable society throughout the catastrophe management cycle. Among the different types of disasters, landslides are one of the devastating disasters which lead to the deformation of the entire landscape. Among the three phases of a disaster event, the post-disaster phase is the critical one which involves long-term processes called rehabilitation, recovery and reconstruction. Incomplete disaster rehabilitation and recovery is a threat to the right of human beings to live with dignity. This research aims to comprehend the rehabilitation process in the post–disaster scenario of the Kavalappara Landslide that occurred in the Malappuram District of the state of Kerala in 2019. In this paper, we primarily concentrate on the impact of landslides on housing, livelihood, and recovery for the local population in Kavalappara. The gaps in the recovery process are also a major emphasis of this paper.

The Kattu Paniya community of the Nilambur Tribal belt was the major tribal population which was impacted by the Kavalappara landslide. It is one of the major Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups (PVTG) in the State of Kerala. The rehabilitation and recovery part of the Kavalappara landslide was entirely different for the tribal and non-tribal populations of the affected area. This paper deals with both of them.

Keywords

Kavalappara landslide, disaster recovery, housing recovery, livelihood recovery, Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups (PVTG), Kattu Paniya.

Introduction

“The extensive damage and disruption that disasters can result in the breakup of neighbourhoods and in the loss of significant sources of social support for disaster survivors, some of them who may never be able to return to their homes, while others may never recover from the experiences.” – (Tierney, 2019)

The United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction defines disaster as ‘A serious disruption of the functioning of a community or a society at any scale due to hazardous events interacting with conditions of exposure, vulnerability and capacity, leading to one or more of the following: human, material, economic and environmental losses and impacts’(UNISDR, 2009). Several types of disasters disrupt the normal life of affected communities. Landslides are one among them.

Recurring disasters in Kerala and the complex issue of rehabilitation of affected communities, especially those who have lost their houses and living environment is a serious issue. This is particularly in the case of people affected by landslides and coastal erosion. In the particular case of communities affected by the Kavalappara landslides of 2019, comprehensive rehabilitation has still not been ensured for all the affected households.

An essential step in the entire disaster management process is the landside recovery phase. People lose everything in a landslide, including their homes, the public infrastructure, and their possibilities for a living. In the case of landslides, rehabilitation from the calamity entails rebuilding every aspect of their lives. Because a landslide would completely wipe out a region, unlike other disasters, there is a remote possibility of recovering the land or the lives of the inhabitants to their pre-disaster state. As a result, it has impacted their ability to cope and increased vulnerability among people, particularly in the lowest socioeconomic parts of society. To reconstruct their lives, those who survived the landslide should receive adequate recovery measures. It will lessen additional effects and provide communities with the resilience to withstand future catastrophes.

This research paper explores the post-disaster phase of the Kavalappara landslide in 2019, giving prior focus on the ‘rehabilitation and recovery’ of the affected communities; both tribal and non-tribal.

Methodology

Both qualitative and quantitative methods of data collection have been adopted for this research paper. The Extent of loss suffered was captured through the quantitative method whereas the experience of displacement and rehabilitation was captured through the qualitative method. The rehabilitation and recovery as well as the post-disaster vulnerabilities of the landslide-affected indigenous community is studied qualitatively and the sampling strategy was the purposive sampling.‘Purposive sampling may be used to select members of a difficult-to-reach, specialised population’ (Neumann et al, 2014). The qualitative research on the disaster-affected indigenous community was conducted with a case-study design and adopted a method of thematic analysis for the analysis of data. Since the total population was limited to 14 families; the sample selected was five families based on the criteria of the extent of vulnerability and their period of life in a rehabilitation centre and the resettlement site.

In the quantitative method, the researcher used a questionnaire to collect data from 58 respondents. The interview schedule contained a set of structured questions that have been prepared, to serve as a guide for the researcher in collecting information or data about a focus on the disaster recovery of the people who are affected by the Kavalappara landslide. The questionnaire was prepared based on the general and specific objectives of the research.

Study Area at Pothukal

The research site of the present study includes the rehabilitation centre at Pothukal and the resettlement area in Anakkallu, Bhoodan colony and Nettikulam (The rest of the non-tribal people were resettled in various places based on their convenience) in Pothukal Panchayat, Nilambur, Malappuram district, Kerala. The rehabilitation centre at Pothukal and the resettlement area in Anakkallu are the two locations that house the Kattu Paniya households displaced by the Kavalappara landslide. The rehabilitation centre at Pothukal is a two-storey building in which the Kattu Paniya families affected by the Kavalappara landslide have resided for the past 3 years. It is opposite the Pothukal Panchayath office, near the private bus stand. The resettlement area in Anakkallu is between Nilambur town and Pothukal town. There is no tarred access road to the resettlement area.

Google Earth Image of Study Area

The disaster event

Since the past couple of years, landslides have been a common hazard in the geographical areas of the state of Kerala. August 8 2019; was a night in the lives of the people of Kavalappara. On that dreadful day, around 7.30 p.m. a large landslide brought on by torrential monsoon rain destroyed a small hamlet residing beneath Muthappan hill at Kavalappara, a section of the Western Ghats in the Nilambur assembly constituency in Malappuram, burying 59 persons alive.

This landslide affected 81 homes either completely or partially. Out of these, 46 settlements were just slightly impacted, while 35 settlements and their residents completely vanished. Additionally, the geological department stated that the area was unsafe for habitation. More than 100 families were forced to relocate as a result.

In 2019, compared to other districts, Malappuram got unprecedented rainfall. The average rainfall they experienced that year was 392.7mm. This excessive rainfall increased the pressure in the area through high infiltration, causing a sudden landslide. In 2019, landslides predominantly damaged the northern districts, whereas in 2018. (Rajesh, Kumar& etal,2021)

More than 100 households were affected by this disaster. In the case study titled; Post-landslide Investigation of a Shallow Landslide, they said 81 houses were partially and wholly affected due to this disaster. However many news reports are showing various data regarding housing losses. During primary data collection, researchers also inquire about the exact number of losses. However, due to some constraints, researchers cannot access the data. Now the victims of the Kavalappara Landslide are scattered in various places. This also creates a complication in obtaining the exact data regarding housing loss.

Most of them belong to the OBC category (74.14%). Only a few populations are included in the SC (6.90%) &ST (3.45%) category. The general category of this area is only 15.52%. They engage in agricultural-related works such as farming, tapping and coolie works.

Impacts of Housing and Livelihood – quantitative data

Figure 1: House Loss

Figure 2: Degree of Housing Loss

Among people who lost their houses due to landslides, 80% of houses were fully destroyed and 20% of houses were partially affected.

Figure 3: Livelihood Loss

Figure 4: Loss of Livelihood Asset

70.69% of the respondents lost their livelihood assets and 29.31% of the respondents did not lose their livelihood assets.

Housing Recovery and Livelihood Recovery

Figure 2: New House

96.55% of the people who lost their houses due to the landslide got a new house and 3.45% of people still did not get a new house.

Most of them received new homes. Due to some accountability and transparency problems in government, many still fight to get a house, even if only a small portion of the population still struggles to find a safe shelter and lives in rental housing and rehabilitation facilities. Additionally, it is simpler to get to the institutions, but they are still lacking resources like wood, water, and the abundance of nature.

Public-Private Partnership in Housing Recovery

In the housing recovery process, one can see the collaboration of the government and private funds. This kind of initiative is very good in the recovery process. However, the private funds should be allocated through the hands of the government. However, according to the information gathered from the respondents, the fund did not directly assist those affected by the disaster. Because of this activity, people do not have any idea about how much the real compensation is. This calls into question the transparency of the governance when dealing with the recovery process. Among the people who got new houses, 33 houses were built by the Lulu group, 2 houses were built by the Varun group, and some of the religious organisations also helped to construct the houses.

Figure 6: Compensation from the government

Gaps in Recovery

Absence of an equitable distribution of livelihood compensation As a result of this, people are still struggling for their livelihood. The government gave 34.38% of the respondent’s compensation for livelihood asset loss and 65.63% of the respondents did not get any compensation for the livelihood asset from the government.
The government did not take any action to restore the agricultural land. Due to this action, people lose the opportunity to do agriculture on their land. Due to this poor implementation, Kerala High Court expressed dissatisfaction towards the government. “It noted that the government has done nothing to restore land to its previous form and that it cannot continue as a mute spectator anymore” (July 17 2022, Times of India)
In the housing recovery, every house is constructed alike. This is not adequate for every family.
During the construction process, they excluded family members, especially women in decision-making. This suggests that male authority prevails inside the families. But women do the majority of our household duties. In this scenario, it is the responsibility of the planning team and other family members to involve women in the decision-making process for building a home.
Authorities are responsible for getting the consent of the people before buying land for them.

From this data, it is evident government concentrates more on housing rather than livelihood recovery. In a recovery process, both are important for living. Otherwise, this livelihood vulnerability creates high risk among the people and they cannot cope with future disaster risk. So, the government should be responsible for avoiding additional vulnerabilities.

The Kattu Paniya community

Among the affected people by this disaster, was a major indigenous community, that suffered much because of the intersection of their pre-existing vulnerabilities with the vulnerability to this hazardous event; The Kattu Paniyas. Paniyas are one of the indigenous communities residing in the tribal belt of Kerala. Paniyans were bonded labourers. The welfare measures of the government have made the tribes dependent on others even for daily needs. In Malappuram, the Paniyan are known as Kattu Paniyans/Kurinhi Paniyan and they are different from the other Paniyan of the state (Rachel Santhosh, 2008). Kattu Paniya is a subgroup seen in the forest region of Nilambur (Malappuram District) leading a lifestyle of primitive tribes (Scheduled Tribes in Malappuram District, n.d.).

Tribals face intersectionality of vulnerability in the form of reduced access to health, education, housing vulnerability, land alienation and marginalisation. This intersectionality of vulnerabilities is also associated with the lesser participation of tribal communities in the decision-making process. Tribals are not homogenous. Some groups enjoy a high status, are more assertive and may have a larger share of development funds. PVTGs are more vulnerable among the tribal groups. The Kattu Paniya community of the Nilambur tribal belt belong to the PVTG category.

The Kattu Paniya of the Nilambur tribal belt is spread in different settlements including Kavalappara, Irulikunnu and Ambumala. In the landslides and floods of 2019, it was the Kattu Paniyas of Kavalappara settlement affected the most. The community has been living in a rehabilitation centre at Pothukal Panchayath for the past 3 years.

Life in rehabilitation centre

The auditorium opposite the Pothukal Panchayath Office, near the Pothukal private bus station is the rehabilitation centre. The researcher first visited the place in December 2021. The Kattupaniya families were rehabilitated to this shelter a couple of weeks after the landslide. Before shifting the families to this auditorium, they were sheltered at the Bhoodanam school. The researcher again visited the rehabilitation centre in August 2022. It was after the 3rd anniversary of the disaster event (August 8th 2019). The families have been living in the rehabilitation centre for the past 3 years.

The rehabilitation centre is almost 18 kilometres from the Nilambur main town and it takes almost one and a half hours of travel by bus/jeep from Nilambur to Pothukal. There is no public transport facility to Pothukal. The auditorium comprising a two-storeyed building houses the rehabilitation camp. The ground floor of the building was occupied by a grocery shop and a meat-selling shop. The entrance to the rehabilitation centre was through a congested path, between two shops.

The two-storeyed – auditorium has been the rehabilitation centre for 14 Kattu Paniya families for the past 3 years, affected by the Kavalappara landslide of 2019. Soon after the landslide, about 32 families (180 people) came to the rehabilitation centre. Many have left and now about 55 people live there consisting of 23 men, 20 women and 12 children. These people live in an area of about 2000 square feet. On one corner, outside the building, there is a small open space where families used to cook. They cook outside as there is not enough cooking space inside the hall. The hall, which is on the first floor, consisted of 2 toilets at one corner and the rest of the space was fully occupied by the families.

As the researcher entered the rehabilitation centre which is on the first floor of the building, a wash area could be observed on the right side and water was spread up all across the tiled floor. The air they breathed was full of odour from the toilet. Many people were sitting on the floor. Clothes were hung in the hall, by randomly tying ropes. There was a gas stove, which belonged to one of the families. This is the space where 14 families (about 43 people) have been cooking, eating and sleeping, for the past 3 years! This leaves a question mark to the right of a human being to live with dignity.

As with any other disaster which leaves a shadow on multiple aspects of human life, the Kavalappara landslide and the resulting life in the rehabilitation centre left vacant spaces in the lives of the indigenous community in terms of their livelihood, social connections, cultural practices etc. ― After the disaster, 32 families came into this rehabilitation centre…almost 180 people and they were accommodated in the two storeys of this building. Many families left this place and started living in rented houses. People with no other choices remained in the camp. “I couldn‘t afford one. I remained here with the rest of the 14 families. We received food items via ITDP and ration shops, but if somebody gets ill…. we are unable to take them to the hospital since we lack enough money for medicines” – said one of the survivors of the disaster who has lived in the rehabilitation centre for the past 3 years.

The reconstruction site – Anakkallu

Anakkallu is located between Nilambur main town and Pothukal town, almost 15 kilometres away from Nilambur. Anakkallu is almost 7-8 kilometres away from the actual Paniya settlement in Kavalappara. The researcher visited the reconstruction site in August 2022. The way to the new settlement area is almost one to two kilometres away from the main road. The path is not tarred. Both sides of the narrow path are surrounded by different kinds of vegetation including areca palm. Only private bus transportation is available at Anakkallu, which is also not frequent. To settle the Anakkallu bus stop people have to either walk or hire an auto rickshaw and pay 40 to 50 rupees. The resettlement area is located in a bit elevated area. The reddish soil in the area reminded the researcher of the disaster area, which was visited earlier in April 2021.

As the researcher reached the area where houses for almost 32 Kattu Paniya families are being constructed, it was clear that the majority of the houses remain incomplete. Despite incomplete construction, 5 families had shifted to the houses from the rehabilitation centre. Electricity connection is still not available in many houses. The houses are arranged in a top-to-bottom fashion on sloping terrain. House plots have been levelled off the sloping terrain. By standing at the entry point to the settlement, the researcher could see houses right at the bottom of the valley. All the houses are single-storeyed terrace buildings. Only limited space is available in between each house. Even though there were many houses remained incomplete in construction, a couple of Kattu Paniya families have already shifted to the Anakkallu and started living in even uncompleted houses, with no electricity supply. This is all because they had no choices and life in the rehabilitation centre was too tough.

There were no trees or greenery in this new area, while Kavalappara was a green place. Residents reported that it was much warmer here at the new site. Even during August, the researcher could find people sitting outside the house for a cool breeze. By standing at the top of the hill, the researcher could observe green hills on the four sides of the area. The researcher could realise the fact that this indigenous community which lived close to the outer edges of the forest is now supposed to live the rest of their life in a comparatively dry area.

The Drinking Water

Drinking water was another serious issue in the rehabilitation centre. ―The drinking water we get is of very poor quality. Many members of our family suffered from frequent stomach problems and vomiting. We were happy and healthy during the times we had drinking water from our chola” – says one among the Paniya community. Chola refers to a forest spring, where fresh water is available in plenty. This forest spring they used to depend on was situated near the Kattu Paniya settlement in the Kavalappara – Muthappan Kunnu region. In the rehabilitation camp, drinking water is provided from a bore well. Initially, the community faced health issues including stomach pain and vomiting after consuming this water at the camp. It took some time to get adjusted to this new ‗taste‘ of water‘ – he concluded.

The situation in Anakkallu is also not much better. Ever since the community left their original place – Kavalappara, the availability of good quality drinking water has become a major problem. Though they face issues related to drinking water at the rehabilitation centre at Pothukal, the real problems are yet to be faced at the Anakkallu where the resettlement is planned and carried out at a slow pace.

The drinking water availability at Anakkallu is a question mark in front of these indigenous people. At present, water is available from one bore well almost 200 metres away from the resettlement area. But for almost 32 families to live…this bore well is not an adequate source of drinking water. One of the rehabilitated family members in Anakkallu remarked about the ongoing case at the Manjeri court on the issue of drinking water availability at the resettlement area.

Cultural Alienation

The disaster-led displacement left this indigenous community alienated and losing their social connections left them in desolation and they remained in a situation in which they felt too embarrassed to seek help from others who lived in the Pothukal town. The cultural practices of this indigenous community are also affected by life in a rehabilitation centre. The temple where the community practises their rituals is situated at the Kavalappara, near the landslide area and is unaffected. Paniya still visits their old environment once in a while, which is slowly converting into a forest and is frequently visited by elephants. The shift to the rehabilitation centre affected their community practices since the distance to the temple increased.

Similar issues are prevailing in the resettlement area as well. The Anakkallu resettlement area lacks the space to perform the rituals of the community. “Still we go to Kavalappara to perform our rituals. It is very difficult to visit Kavalappara especially if it rains. We are afraid that another disaster may occur, if it rains heavily at Kavalappara. We need a place to worship our deity, close to our settlement. Here, there is no place for the same. Also it is our need to have our own space for cremating our people after death. Here very limited space is allocated for each family and no such facilities are available. This need was raised at the Ooru Koottam, last time”- said one of the women from the community.

The disaster recovery of the tribal community

The recovery phase of any disaster is one of the long-term and crucial phases in the post-disaster section of the overall disaster management cycle. Recovery is a broader term which includes the physical as well as the psychological aspects. It covers the broader aspects of socio-economic and cultural recovery. It is a clear-cut fact that disasters like landslides lead to the displacement of communities from a specific area since it is geographically highly vulnerable and the deformation of landform in the aftermath of the landslide makes it less eligible to inhabit. Hence unlike disasters like floods, landslides compel the communities to be displaced from their original surroundings. In the case of indigenous communities whose socio-cultural beliefs and practices are rooted within the area of living, it is a tough task to relocate as part of recovery. ‘When the Adivasis live in the forests, they have access to different kinds of vegetables, tubers, and fish and forest products. Once they are displaced from the forests, their food habits and diet change drastically. This is applicable even for the educated individuals. Also when they move out of their ‘Ooru’, they experience a language barrier. They have their dialect and language for communication in their Ooru for which they are ridiculed. When they live in towns, they get alienated from their language and their cultural values. The tribals consider the forest and their cultural values imbibed in it as sacred and when they move out of the forest they cannot preserve it’ (Chithra, 2019).

The Kavalappara landslide survivors who belong to the Kattu Paniya community face an incomplete housing recovery mainly because of the mismatches in the communication of information. Information communication is one of the major aspects in the post-disaster phase, especially during the recovery and rehabilitation process. The significance of providing accurate information regarding relief funds to the marginalised sections of society who lack access to information on their own is something that must be discussed. Here the Kattu Paniya community affected by the Kavalappara disaster is such a marginalised community who lack access to information unless the concerned authorities provide the same, that too in a language without jargon. Here what happened was the clear-cut illustration of a lack of access to information which led the families to incomplete housing. The families weren‘t informed about the fund for housing provided along with other monetary aids like the MP fund. Without knowing the fact, many families spent the money on other needs, which was provided for house construction.

The recovery from the Kavalappara disaster is still incomplete in the case of the Kattu Paniya tribal community. Recovery and rehabilitation without considering the peculiarities of an indigenous community like Kattu Paniyas who lived closer to the edges of forest land is more dangerous than the Kavalappara disaster which affected their lives.

Recommendations and Conclusion

Rehabilitation is the longest and most expensive phase of disaster management and should be accessible to all disaster survivors (Amatya et.al, 2020). Rehabilitation is defined as “a set of interventions designed to optimise functioning and reduce disability in individuals with health conditions in interaction with their environment (WHO, 2021). In the case of landslide-affected communities, the process of rehabilitation includes housing with proper sanitation and drinking water availability, access roads to the settlements and so on.

Authorities and decision-makers need to be aware of the problems that displaced families undergo when they reside in temporary shelters for long periods.

(a) Proper community – participation should be ensured in the rehabilitation and resettlement activities in a post-disaster scenario. It emerged that the tribal communities were not consulted while selecting the site for rehabilitation.

(b) District administration needs to take proactive measures to restore livelihoods. This is especially the case when the community displaced is indigenous and is considered particularly vulnerable. Their access to daily wage work depends on their social networks which get disrupted with displacement. Hence measures need to be taken to restore their livelihoods.

(c) The rehabilitation and resettlement activities should be carried out concerning the peculiarities of the affected community. Especially when it comes to the case of indigenous communities like Kattu Paniya, rehabilitation without giving priority to their community beliefs and way of life eventually affects their community life. This is clear from this study conducted among them.

(d) Information communication is one of the major aspects in the post-disaster phase, especially during the recovery and rehabilitation process. The significance of providing accurate information regarding relief funds to the marginalised sections of society who lack access to information on their own is something that must be discussed. Here in the case of Kattu Paniyas of Kavalappara, they weren’t informed about the fund for housing provided along with other monetary aids like the MP fund. Without knowing the fact, many families spent the money on other needs, which was provided for house construction. Therefore, proper information communication to marginalised sections like tribal communities is the need of the hour, so that post-disaster phases including resettlement can be completed.

Emerging frameworks on post-disaster vulnerability and post–disaster recovery reveal that post-disaster vulnerability is a major hindrance to successful post–disaster recovery.

For housing rehabilitation, enough facilities and infrastructure must be offered. Authority must guarantee a clean, safe environment for everyone, especially for women.
Equal distribution and recovery measures must be offered concurrently, particularly in the case of housing. Don’t discriminate solely based on a person’s class or caste.
To guarantee that resources are given evenly to all of the individuals affected by a crisis, governance needs to be more transparent and accountable to the populace.

This study focuses purely on the post-disaster phase; especially the rehabilitation and recovery part of the Kavalappara landslide 2019. Post-disaster recovery is an important element in the disaster management cycle. When a disaster hits a community, response and recovery are the important parts, and people and authorities give attention to that area. But that attention slowly started to fade for some reason. Response is the immediate action taken within 2–3 days after a disaster. But in the case of recovery, it will take a long time. Because recovery is more than just rebuilding buildings, it must ensure that all aspects of physical, social, cultural, and environmental assets are restored and that their recovery can cope with future disaster risks. Examine how much loss occurs in housing and livelihood, how they recover in these two aspects, and what gaps occurred in the recovery process on the topic “post-disaster recovery: Kavalappara landslide.” From this study, the researcher understood, that they lost their houses, public infrastructure, livelihood opportunities and assets. In the case of housing and infrastructure, they partially recovered. However, in the cases of livelihood and assets, they are still struggling to recover. Hence, it is evident they are still vulnerable economically and physically. This vulnerability also affects other aspects of their lives, such as education, health, and social level. Even if a disaster hits the community, their situation is even worse than the previous one. A landslide occurred 3 years ago in Kavalappara, and the affected people are still in a haunting situation.

The findings of the study revealed that even after 3 years of the landslide event, the Kattu Paniya families remain in the rehabilitation centre, which is in the middle of a town. They are forced to live a life in an environment which is entirely different from their actual one. Also, the community face livelihood vulnerability mainly due to alienation from their social connections. They also face housing vulnerability due to a lack of proper information communication in the post-disaster phase regarding the relief fund allocations. The study also reveals that the rehabilitation process is conducted without properly understanding the cultural peculiarities of the community and without clearly understanding the actual needs of the community. In brief, there is a lack of proper community participation in the entire process of resettlement. The rehabilitation process can be successful if and only if it properly addresses the community’s needs. Otherwise, the post-disaster vulnerabilities will haunt the affected communities for a long period. Hence, disaster recovery should be more effective, which can ensure the coping capacity of the people to avoid future disaster risks.

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Memories of landslide still haunt Kavalappara

A section of the houses built to rehabilitate the families who survived the landslide of August 2019

Kavalappara will never forget August 8, 2019. At 7.30pm on the fateful day, a massive landslide triggered by intense monsoon rain buried 59 residents alive, wiping out a small community living beneath Muthappan hill at Kavalappara, a part of Western Ghats in the Nilambur assembly constituency in Malappuram.It was raining when Express team reached Kavalappara then. The entire area had a muddy red hue as the deep-red laterite soils that had caved in mixed with the rain water and flooded every nook and corner of the valley including the Chaliyaar river.

Now, almost one-and-a-half years later, the desolate patch of land is covered in plants. After the landslide, the government, aided by socio-religious outfits, rehabilitated 148 families from the deadly valley and provided all basic infrastructure. The authorities set up colonies dotted with 600-sqft houses, twin road connectivity, power and water connections. However, those who survived have yet to move on, emotionally.

“The new area has all the facilities. My wife and kids are happy here,” says K Krishnan. His eyes, however, reflect his grief of losing his friends and relatives in the disaster and moving away from the place he once called home. Though every colony resident has been rehabilitated, most still have a tale of sorrow to narrate – about the untimely death of their dear ones, a close relative or a friend. “Perhaps, it will take some time to fully recover from the shock,” he says.

People who lived close to the valley are also grief-stricken. Living alone in a thatched tile house situated just 10m away from ground zero, separated only by a road, septuagenarian Narayani Nadakkal cannot fight back tears as she narrates her ordeals after the landslide. Her husband died four years ago and their only daughter is married. She used to go to the houses, that are now buried, to sleep before disaster struck.

“Already, I am alone. My friends and neighbours who supported me are no more. The rest have been rehabilitated,” she says. She continues to stay in the same house. The heap of mud visible from her window still hides 11 bodies of her neighbours. The authorities could retrieve only 48 bodies out of the 59 who were declared dead. The wind blowing down from the hill and the valley bring back spine-chilling memories.

“I never believed in fairy tales. But the suffocating silence and the cold winds from the hill and valley often make me mad at nights. They could have rehabilitated me too as I am a lone elderly living in a thatched old house. I know I am not eligible for the rehabilitation technically as I am not a direct victim of the landslide and my thatched house is situated opposite to the victims’ houses. Now, I seek the support of people nearby and go to their houses at night to escape the haunting memories and loneliness,” she says. Shanavas, 49, who lives close to Narayani’s house, says soon after the landslide, the authorities provided counselling for those living nearby. “However, it has not helped purge the tragic memories. Our children were afraid to go out at night until recently as bodies of 11 people are yet to be recovered,” he says.

While the calamity changed their life, almost everyone in the region says the government and socio-religious outfits helped them bring their life to the track. Help poured in from across the state and outside and helped the victims find the lost rhythm of their life in just one-and-a-half years, they said.

While there were complaints the aid was provided unevenly, the rehabilitation was largely a huge success and all people from different walks of life, cutting across political lines and religious moorings, joined hands to support a community in distress. The development of other infrastructure, especially road connectivity and its standard, however, is not in tune with the development in other parts of Nilambur. Pothukal panchayat, ruled by both the fronts last time following a split verdict, saw a clear mandate for Left in the 2020 local body elections. Kavalappara ward, won by CPM in 2015, elected an independent candidate in 2020.

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Regional-scale landslide modeling using machine learning and GIS: a case study for Idukki district, Kerala, India

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Published: 23 April 2024

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Dhanya Madhu ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0002-6958-2825 1 , 2 ,
G. K. Nithya 1 ,
S. Sreekala 1 &
Maneesha Vinodini Ramesh 1

Globally, landslides impact in a site-specific and regional scale, and have affected 4.8 million human beings during1998–2017. Landslides, being a highly complex phenomenon involving real-time and near real-time interactions between hydrological, geomorphological, climatological as well as anthropological factors impacting large spatial areas, demand the development of regional-scale warning systems. Even though an extensive body of research already exists in the field of landslide early warning, the prediction of the actual location and the time of landslide initiation is still a major challenge. In the current study, we compare the performance of ten machine learning (ML) algorithms useful for landslide early warning. The current study is performed in the Idukki district of Kerala state in India. A database with landslide incidents is created using research literature, reports from the Geological Survey of India (GSI) as well as news articles. Landslide causative factors, as indicated by previous literature, have been mapped using Geographic Information System (GIS). The different ML algorithms considered for this study are Decision Tree, Logistic Regression, K Nearest Neighbor, Gaussian Naive Bayes, Support Vector Machine, and its different kernel functions such as linear, Polynomial, Gaussian and ensemble algorithms namely Random Forest and AdaBoost. The performance of the different algorithms is quantified and compared utilizing established statistical metrics such as G-Mean, F1 score, and ROC-AUC score. Our results follow the similar ones in literature where the machine learning techniques provide an efficient tool for landslide susceptibility mapping. All the algorithms considered produce reasonable results.

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Acknowledgements

The authors express their gratitude for the immeasurable motivation and guidance provided by Sri. (Dr) Mata Amritanandamayi Devi, the Chancellor of Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham. The authors acknowledge the Indian Meteorological Department for the daily rainfall data. We gratefully acknowledge the landslide research team members at Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham for the landslide photos from field. The authors are thankful for the effort of those who have directly or indirectly helped in doing this work.

No grants, or funds were received during the preparation of this manuscript.

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Dhanya Madhu, G. K. Nithya, S. Sreekala & Maneesha Vinodini Ramesh

Department of Physics, Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham, Amritapuri, India

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Madhu, D., Nithya, G.K., Sreekala, S. et al. Regional-scale landslide modeling using machine learning and GIS: a case study for Idukki district, Kerala, India. Nat Hazards (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11069-024-06592-3

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Received : 18 December 2022

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Published : 23 April 2024

DOI : https://doi.org/10.1007/s11069-024-06592-3

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This study is based on a comprehensive field investigation at the Kavalappara landslide site and we developed a detailed landslide susceptibility map with the local community's involvement.
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In recent years, landslides have become a typical monsoon calamity in the Western Ghats region of Kerala, India. In addition to property damage, heavy rainfall (36% above normal) and multiple landslides (4728) killed 48 people in 2018. This tendency continued throughout the monsoon seasons of 2019, 2020, and 2021, resulting in the deaths of over 100 people. Anomalous precipitation is ascribed ...
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Globally, landslides impact in a site-specific and regional scale, and have affected 4.8 million human beings during1998-2017. Landslides, being a highly complex phenomenon involving real-time and near real-time interactions between hydrological, geomorphological, climatological as well as anthropological factors impacting large spatial areas, demand the development of regional-scale warning ...

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Post-Disaster Phase: The Kavalappara Landslide 2019

Keywords

Introduction

Methodology

Study Area at Pothukal

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Impacts of Housing and Livelihood – quantitative data

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Public-Private Partnership in Housing Recovery

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Regional-scale landslide modeling using machine learning and GIS: a case study for Idukki district, Kerala, India

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