Rapid visual screening technique has been resorted to for assessing seismic vulnerability and risk in the Himalayan township of Mussoorie that falls in Zone IV of the Earthquake Zoning Map of India.
The area around Kunwari Pass in Central Himalayas is the source of a number of streams that include Dhaknala, Karmanasa, Patalganga, Belakuchi and Garurganga. The first is the tributary of Dhauliganga whereas the rest drain into Alaknanda. These streams are known for the devastation they have caused in the past, due to the flash floods that followed blockade of these streams due to landslides.
Despite being located in the seismically highly vulnerable region, Uttarakhand shows an elaborate tradition of constructing multistoried houses. Both the local dialects of the region (Kumaoni and Garhwali) have unique words for identifying four different floors of a building. This suggests common occurrence of multistoried structures in the region. Rajgarhi area, Uttarkashi District has a large number of intact multistoried
