PARLIAMENT QUESTION: SEISMOGRAPH NETWORK

Posted On: 01 APR 2026 11:52AM by PIB Delhi The National Centre for Seismology (NCS), under the Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES), operates and maintains seismological observatories under the National Seismological Network (NSN), which presently comprises 170 observatories across the country, including 07 stations in Himachal Pradesh and 07 in Karnataka. These stations are equipped with broadband seismographs and strong motion accelerographs. The details of these stations including site/location, latitude and longitude, district, seismic zone classification as per IS 1893 (Part-1):2016, and year of commissioning/upgradation, are provided in the table below. The NCS is the nodal agency responsible for installation, operation and maintenance of these stations. The stations at S. Nos. 10 to 14 are operated at sites co-located with the seismological observatories maintained by the Karnataka State Natural Disaster Monitoring Centre (KSNDMC), Bengaluru. S. No. Site / District State Seismic Zone Latitude ( o N) Longitude ( o E) Date of Installation Date of Latest Upgradation 1 Bhakra Himachal Pradesh V 31.3947 76.3810 12.07.1959 29.10.2015 2 Kalpa, Kinnaur District Himachal Pradesh IV 31.5460 78.2600 12.05.1985 26.12.2017 3 Sundar Nagar, Mandi Himachal Pradesh V 31.5305 76.9056 01.01.1968 19.01.2018 4 Tissa, Chamba Himachal Pradesh IV 32.8366 76.1503 27.05.2018 27.05.2018 5 Dharamshala, Kangra Himachal Pradesh V 32.2476 76.3067 25.12.2007 25.12.2007 6 Shimla Himachal Pradesh IV 31.1280 77.1670 01.01.1975 27.12.2007 7 Pong Dam, Kangra Himachal Pradesh V 31.9560 75.9550 01.09.1963 21.12.2017 8 Mangalore Karnataka III 12.8923 74.8677 18.01.1984 22.12.2015 9 Bengaluru Karnataka II 13.0211 77.5704 11.07.2021 11.07.2021 10 Mandya District Karnataka II 12.4100 76.5744 14.07.2021 14.07.2021 11 Kodagu District Karnataka II 12.4860 75.9089 17.07.2021 17.07.2021 12 Ballari District Karnataka II 15.2796 76.3194 29.07.2021 29.07.2021 13 Uttara Kannada Karnataka III 15.2626 74.5349 01.08.2021 01.08.2021 14 Kalaburagi Karnataka II 17.2922 76.7663 17.12.2021 17.12.2021 The Seismic Zoning Map of India, published by the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) as part of the code: IS 1893(Part-1):2016 -Criteria for Earthquake Resistant Design of Structures, remains the current standard, as the revised zonation has been withdrawn in March 2026 . The National Centre for Seismology (NCS), through its National Seismological Network (NSN), continuously monitors earthquake activity in and around the country and detects and locates events of magnitude 3.0 and above occurring in any part of the country. This provides an assessment of regional seismicity, including in areas around major dams and hydropower projects. NCS does not maintain dedicated instrumentation for monitoring individual dams; such site-specific monitoring is carried out by dam/project authorities, generally in coordination with the Central Water Commission (CWC). Seismic data from stations operated by the NCS are streamed in real time to the Earthquake Monitoring Centre at its Headquarters in New Delhi, primarily through VSAT and other telemetry systems. The data are processed for rapid estimation of earthquake parameters and timely dissemination. Earthquake information is made available on the NCS website and the BhooKamp mobile application, and is also shared with State Emergency Operation Centres (SEOCs) and other stakeholders through SMS, Email, Fax and other communication channels. Details of earthquakes recorded in Himachal Pradesh and Karnataka during the last five years (2021-2025), magnitude band-wise, are given below: Magnitude Range Himachal Pradesh Karnataka 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 <3.0 44 38 31 13 8 11 23 21 10 11 3.0-3.9 21 12 14 22 13 12 12 3 2 6 4.0-4.9 2 4 - - 2 2 1 - - - 5.0-5.9 - - - 1 - - - - - - Total 67 54 45 36 23 25 36 24 12 17 All the earthquakes recorded in Karnataka and Himachal Pradesh during the last five years were of shallow depth (<30 km), except three events in Himachal Pradesh during 2021 and one event during 2022, which occurred in the depth &ge; 30 km. Details of all earthquakes recorded during the last five years are available on NCS website www.seismo.gov.in and also detailed below: District-wise recorded earthquakes in Himachal Pradesh (2021-2025) District / Region 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 Bilaspur 3 1 3 - - Chamba 22 17 17 11 13 Dharamshala 1 1 - - - Hamirpur 1 1 1 - - Kalpa - - 1 - - Kangra 6 5 3 1 2 Kinnaur 10 6 6 6 - Kullu 3 2 2 2 1 Lahaul and Spiti 4 4 6 8 1 Mandi 5 11 3 6 4 Shimla 11 4 2 2 2 Sirmaur 1 2 - - - Solan - - 1 - - Total 67 54 45 36 23 District-wise recorded earthquakes in Karnataka (2021-2025) District/Region 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 Ballari - 1 2 7 - Bidar