Abstract
Slope instability is a big challenge for the population in mountainous regions. It poses a threat to life, economy, and infrastructure. For the safety of people, various prevention and precautions are taken and hence many scientific studies are going on. In the present study, the stability of the Karmi landslides zone, Bageshwar, Uttarakhand, India is assessed. Karmi village lies quite close to the northern border of India and the excavated roads are the only means of commute. The area lies in a tectonically active lesser Himalayan zone with high relief. Slope geometry was extracted using a total station, and seven different slope geometries were plotted. Soil and rock mass samples were taken and evaluated from various field and laboratory investigations. The direct shear test was performed to assess the friction angle and cohesion of the soil and rock mass. Numerical simulations viz., finite element analysis and probabilistic analysis have been applied on all seven slope sections and found that the mean and median safety factor of all the modeled slopes was 0.78 and 0.81, respectively. The study ascertains that the whole area to be quite vulnerable to failure, especially during rains, since the pore pressure build-up diminishes the shear strength of the slope forming material. Possible mitigation measures have been suggested based on the examined instability of the hill slopes.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Arnold, D.N. (1981) Discretization by finite elements of a model parameter dependent problem. Numerische Mathematik, v.37, pp.405–421.
Awasthi, C.K., Jana, A., Dey, A. and Sreedeep, S. (2019) Stability assessment of reinforced rock slope based on two-dimensional finite element approach: A Himalayan case study. In: Sundaram, R., Shahu, J., Havanagi, V. (Eds.), Geotechnics for Transportation Infrastructure. Lecture Notes in Civil Engineering. Springer, Singapore, v.28, pp.639–650.
Chamyal, L.S. (1991) Stratigraphy of the Lesser Himalayan rocks in Kumaun. Proc. Indian Acad. Sci. (Earth Planet Sci.), v.100, pp.293–306.
Christian, J.T., and Baecher, G.B. (1999) Point-Estimate Method as Numerical Quadrature. Jour. Geotech. Geoenviron. Engg., v.125(9), pp.779–786.
Dawson, E.M., Roth, W.H., and Drescher, A. (1999) Slope Stability Analysis by Strength Reduction. Geotechnique, v.49(6), pp.835–840.
Duncan, J.M. (1996) State of the art: limit equilibrium and finite-element analysis of slopes. Jour. Geotech. Engg., v.122(7), pp.577–596.
Eberhardt, E. (2003) Rock slope stability analysis — utilization of advanced numerical techniques. Earth and Ocean Sciences at UBC Report. University of British Columbia (UBC), Vancouver, Canada. pp.41.
Griffiths, D.V. and Fenton, G.A. (2004) Probabilistic slope stability analysis by finite elements. Jour. Geotech. Geoenviron. Engg., v.130(5), pp.507–518.
Griffiths, D.V. and Lane, P.A. (1999) Slope Stability Analysis by Finite Elements. Geotechnique, v.49(3), pp.387–403.
Hackston, A. and Rutter, E. (2016) The Mohr-Coulomb criterion for intact rock strength and friction — a re-evaluation and consideration of failure under polyaxial stresses. Solid Earth, v.7, pp.493–508.
Hammah, R.E., Yacoub, T.E., Corkum, B., Wibowo, F. and Curran, J.H. (2007) Analysis of blocky rock slopes with finite element shear strength reduction analysis. In: Proceedings of the 1st Canada-US Rock Mechanics Symposium, pp.329–334.
Kainthola, A., Singh, P.K., and Singh, T.N. (2015) Stability investigation of road cut slope in basaltic rockmass, Mahabaleshwar, India. Geoscience Frontiers, v.6(6), pp.837–845.
Kainthola, A., Singh, P.K., Wasnik, A.B., Sazid, M. and Singh, T.N. (2012) Finite Element Analysis of Road Cut Slopes using Hoek & Brown Failure Criterion. Internat. Jour. Earth Sci. Engg., v.5(5), pp.1100–1109.
Kainthola, A., Verma, D., Gupte, S.S. and Singh, T.N. (2011) A Coal Mine Dump Stability Analysis — A Case Study. Geomaterials, v.1(1), pp.1–13.
Keefer, D.K. (2002) Investigating Landslides Caused by Earthquakes — A Historical Review. Surveys in Geophysics, v.23, pp.473–510.
Kumar, V. (2017) Statistical Distribution of Rainfall in Uttarakhand, India. Appl. Water Sci., v.7, pp.4765–4776.
Labuz, J.F., and Zang, A. (2012) Mohr-Coulomb Failure Criterion. Rock Mech. Rock Engg., v.45, pp.975–979.
Laouafa, F., and Royis, P. (2004) An iterative algorithm for finite element analysis. Jour. Computational and Applied Mathematics, v.164–165, pp.469–491.
Mahanta, B., Singh, H.O., Singh, P.K., Kainthola, A., and Singh, T.N. (2016) Stability analysis of potential failure zones along NH-305, India. Natural Hazards, v.83(3), pp.1341–1357.
Matsui, T., and San, K.C. (1992) Finite Element Slope Stability Analysis by Shear Strength Reduction Technique. Soils & Foundations, v.32(1), pp.59–70.
Matthews, C., Farook, Z., and Helm, P. (2014) Slope stability analysis-limit equilibrium or the finite element method. Ground Engg., v.48(5), pp.22–28.
Merh, S.S. (1977) Structural studies in the parts of Kumaun Himalaya. Himalayan Geol., v.7, pp.26–42.
Pain, A., Kanungo, D.P., and Sarkar, S. (2014) Rock slope stability assessment using finite element-based modelling — examples from the Indian Himalayas. Geomechanics and Geoengineering, v.9, pp.215–30.
Pande, R.K. (1992) Slope instability assessment in the Karmi area of Central Himalaya, India. Environmentalist, v.12, pp.211–221.
Prakash, G., Mehdi, S.H., and Kumar, G. (1978) Geology of the Chaukhtia-Bageshwar area, Almora district, Kumaun Himalaya, UP. Himalayan Geol., v.8(2), pp.1049–1063.
RocScience Inc. (2004) Application of the Finite Element Method to Slope Stability, RocScience Inc. Toronto. Available at https://www.rocscience.com/assets/resources/learning/papers/Application-of-the-Finite-Element-Method-to-Slope-Stability.pdf [Date accessed: 10/12/2019].
Singh, P.K., Wasnik, A.B., Kainthola, A., Sazid, M., and Singh, T.N. (2013) The stability of road cut cliff face along SH-121: a case study. Natural Hazards, v.68(2), pp.497–507.
Solanki, A., Gupta, V., Bhakuni, S.S., Ram, P., and Joshi, M. (2019) Geological and geotechnical characterization of the Khotila landslides in the Dharchula region, NE Kumaun Himalaya. Jour. Earth System Sci, Indian Acad. Sci, v. 128(4), pp.86.
Tripathi, D.K. (2018) Application of remote sensing and geographic information system in terrain analysis. Internat. Jour. Scientific Research in Computer Science Applications and Management Studies, v.7(5), pp.1–4.
Ugai, K. (1989) A method of calculation of total factor of safety of slopes by elasto-plastic FEM. Soils and Foundations, v.29, pp.190–195.
Valdiya, K.S. (1980) Geology of Kumaun Lesser Himalaya. Wadia Institute of Himalayan Geology, Dehradun, 291p.
Valdiya, K.S. (1983) Lesser Himalayan Geology: Crucial Problems and Controversies. Curr. Sci, v.52(18), pp.839–857.
Valley, B., and Duff, D. (2011) Probabilistic analyses in Phase2 8.0, RocScience, Available at https://www.rocscience.com/documents/pdfs/rocnews/spring2011/Phase2stat-Probabilistic-Analyses-in-Phase2.pdf [Date accessed: 28/02/2020].
Yin, A. (2006) Cenozoic tectonic evolution of the Himalayan orogen as constrained by along-strike variation of structural geometry, exhumation history, and foreland sedimentation. Earth Sci. Rev., v.76(1–2), pp.1–131.
Zheng, H., Liu, D.F., and Li, C. (2005) Slope stability analysis based on elasto?plastic finite element method. Internat. Jour. Numerical Methods in Engg., v.64(14), pp.1871–1888.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Tiwari, V.N., Pandey, V.H.R., Kainthola, A. et al. Assessment of Karmi Landslide Zone, Bageshwar, Uttarakhand, India. J Geol Soc India 96, 385–393 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12594-020-1567-0
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12594-020-1567-0