Natural Hazards and Disasters

From the chapter, Assam, West Bengal and Bihar are among the high flood-prone states of India. Among the given options, Assam is the correct answer.

The chapter’s answer to the Malpa landslide question is Pithoragarh district in Uttaranchal (now Uttarakhand).

The chapter says that Tamil Nadu sometimes experiences flooding during November–January due to the retreating monsoon, i.e. in the winter months.

The chapter states that Majuli, the largest riverine island in the world, is situated in the Brahmaputra river.

In the chapter’s classification table, blizzards are listed under Atmospheric disasters.

A hazard becomes a disaster when its impact is so severe that it causes or threatens serious disruption of life and property, including death and injury, and the affected community cannot cope with it using normal services. In short, when the magnitude of destruction and damage is very high, a hazard turns into a disaster.

There are more earthquakes in the Himalayas and the north-eastern region because the Indian plate is moving north-eastward and is constantly colliding with the Eurasian plate. The plates remain locked, energy accumulates, stress builds up, and when the lock breaks, the sudden release of energy causes earthquakes. These regions lie in highly active tectonic zones.