Similar 2000 Mumbai landslide, 2014 Malin landslide, 2007 South Asian floods, Great Bengal famine of, 2014 India–Pakistan floods | ||
The Malpa landslide was one of the worst landslides in India. On 18 August 1998 at 3.00 a.m., massive landslides wiped away the entire village of Malpa in the Pithoragarh district of Uttarakhand, then in Uttar Pradesh in Kali Valley of Higher Kumaon division of the Himalayas. The rockfall started on 16 August bringing down huge rocks which initially killed three mules. A total of 221 people died, including 60 Hindu pilgrims traveling to Tibet as part of "Kailash Manas Sarovar Yatra". One noted death was that of the Indian dancer Protima Bedi. The rockfall continued till 21 August. As the area lies in a seismic zone, the earthquakes of 1979 and 1980 may have been the underlying cause, as was attributed by a report of the Wadia Institute of Himalayan Geology.
Causes of Landslide
The landslide resulted in approximately one million cubic meters of rockfall and debris flow, which subsequently partially obstructed the Sharda River. The primary cause of the landslide was the presence of steep, nearly vertical rock slopes above the valley. Contributing factors included the close proximity of the rock mass to major tectonic plates, significant rainfall permeating the porous rocks, and stress exerted on the rock formations. Additionally, natural disasters in the area have been linked to unplanned construction and urbanization on fluvial and unconsolidated materials situated near active faults and thrusts.
The slide demonstrated the distressed state of rock in the Himalayan region because of the drift of the Indian plate northward.
