REPORT OF TECHNICAL TALK  SERIES III

“Identifying archaeological and Engineering evidence of heritage structures after earthquakes: case studies of damage, resilience and risk reduction from the 2015 Gorkha Earthquake and 1905 Kangra Earthquake”

Don Bosco College of Engineering in collaboration with Department of Archaeology, Government of Goa organized a technical talk at the Sanskruti Bhavan in the Art and Culture multipurpose hall, Panjim  on July 8, 2023 at 4:30 p.m.  

The talk was organized by Asst. Prof. Jeffrey Valadares and Asst. Prof. Nadya Baracho along with Archeologist Varad Sabnis and Conservation Assistant Er. Sumesh Mahale. The Speaker for the technical talk series was Dr. Ashutosh Kumar, Assistant Professor from school of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology, Mandi.

 Dr. Ashutosh spoke on ‘Identifying Archaeological and Engineering Evidence of heritage Structures after Earthquakes: Case Studies of Damage, Resilience and Risk Reduction from the 2015 Gorkha Earthquake and 1905 Kangra Earthquake’.

In his talk he elaborated on the 2015 Gorkha Earthquake that was a humanitarian disaster but also a cultural catastrophe that damaged and destroyed historic monuments across Nepal, including those within the Kathmandu Valley UNESCO World Heritage Property.  He highlighted that in the rush to rebuild, traditionally constructed foundations are being removed and replaced with modern materials without assessments of whether these contributed to the collapse of a monument. He explained how measures taken without scientific recording, have led to the irreversible destruction of earlier subsurface phases of cultural activity and the potential loss of evidence for successful traditional seismic adaptations and risk reduction strategies, with no research into whether modern materials, such as concrete and steel, would offer enhanced resilience.

He spoke about the post-disaster investigations including archaeological excavation, geophysical survey and geo-archaeological analysis linked to architectural and engineering studies. He highlighted how they evaluated and assessed the damage and seismic adaptations of historic structures within Nepal’s Kathmandu Valley. 

The lecture also included an extensive investigation that was carried out to gain better understanding of the seismic-resilient features of Kath-Kuni structures (mainly timber-laced dry masonry construction) prevalent in the Himachal Pradesh region of India. 

Lessons learned from evidence of potential weaknesses, as well as historic ‘risk-sensitive tactics’ of hazard reduction within monuments were highlighted. Architects, faculty members, students and heritage enthusiast attended the talk.