NIDM

Bihar
National Disaster Risk Reduction Portal

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Map of Bihar State1

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1. STATE PROFILE2
1.1 General:-

Bihar is located in the eastern part of the country (between 83-30' to 88-00' longitude). It is an
entirely landlocked state, although the outlet to the sea through the port of Kolkata is not far
away. Bihar lies mid-way between the humid West Bengal in the east and the sub humid Uttar
Pradesh in the west which provides it with a transitional position in respect of climate, economy
and culture. It is bounded by Nepal in the north and by Jharkhand in the south. The Bihar plain is
divided into two unequal halves by the river Ganga which flows through the middle from west to
east.
Latitude 24-20'-10" ~ 27-31'-15" N

Longitude 82-19'-50" ~ 88-17'-40" E

Rural Area 92,257.51 sq. kms

Urban Area 1,095.49 sq. kms

Total Area 94,163.00 sq. kms

Height above Sea-Level 173 Feet

Normal Rainfall 1,205 mm

Avg. Number of Rainy Days 52.5 Days in a Year

1.2 Administrative Setup:-

Divisions 9

Districts 38

Sub-Divisions 101

CD Blocks 534

Panchayats 8,471

Number of Revenue Villages 45,103

Number of Urban Agglomerations 14

Number of Towns 199

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 Statutory Towns 139

Non-Statutory Towns 60

Police Stations 853

Civil Police Stations 813

Railway Police Stations 40

Police Districts 43

Civil Police District 39

Railway Police District 4

1.3 Soil:-
Soil is one of the most important resources of a nation. It is the gift of nature of immense value.
The most common use of the word soil is in the sense of a medium in which plants grow,
although it has a different connotation at different time and place, and for persons engaged in
different professions. Almost all the economic activities are directly or indirectly dependent on
soil. Thus soil is the backbone of agricultural and industrial development.
Soil has a number of characteristics, which may be regarded as the aggregate of the physical,
chemical and biological properties. The Bihar plane consists of a thick alluvial mantle of drift
origin overlying in most part. The siwalik and older tertiary rocks. The soil is mainly young loam
rejuvenated every year by constant deposition of silt, clay and sand brought by different streams.
This soil is deficient in phosphoric acid, nitrogen and humus, but potash and lime are usually
present in sufficient quantity.
There are three major types of soil in Bihar:
Piedmont Swamp Soil - found in northwestern part of west Champaran district.
Terai Soil found in northern part of the state along the border of Nepal.
The Gangetic Alluvium the plain of Bihar is covered by gangetic alluvium (both new as
well as old).

1.4 Climate:-
The climate of Bihar is a part of the climatic pattern of the Indian subcontinent. It enjoys a
continental monsoon type of climate owing to its great distance from the sea.
The factors affecting the climate of Bihar are:
It extends from 22-degree north to 27-degree latitude. Hence its location is tropical to sub
tropical.
The Himalayan Mountains in the north have a significant bearing on the distribution of
monsoon rainfall in Bihar.
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 Bihar joins the Ganga delta and Assam.
Seasons and their duration:
Cold weather season - December to February.
Hot weather season March to May.
Southwest monsoon June to September.
Retreating southwest monsoon October to November.

1.5 Socio Economic Profile:-

Population 10,38,04,637

Male 5,41,85,347

Female 4,96,19,290

Population (0~6 Years Group)

In Absolute Numbers 1,85,82,229

Male 96,15,280

Female 89,66,949

Percentage of Total Population 17.90%

Male 17.75%

Female 18.07%

Literacy

In Absolute Numbers 5,43,90,254

Male 3,27,11,975

Female 2,16,78,279

Percentage of Total Population 63.82%

Male 73.39%

Female 53.33%

Decadal Population Growth (2001-2011)

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 Absolute 2,08,06,128

As Percentage 25.07%

Highest Decadal Growth at Madhepura District (30.65%)

Lowest Decadal Growth at Gopalganj District (18.83%)

Civil Police Stations 813

Railway Police Stations 40

Density of Population 1,102 per sq kms

Highest Density Sheohar: 1882 per sq kms

Lowest Density Kaimur: 488 per sq kms

Most Populous District Patna: 57,72,804

Least Populous District Sheikhpura: 6,34,927

Sex Ratio (Females/Thousand Males) 916

Highest Ratio (Gopalganj) 1,015

Lowest Ratio (Munger and Bhagalpur) 879

Highest Literacy Rate Rohtas: 75.59%

Lowest Literacy Rate Purnia: 52.49%

Average Population of a District 27,31,701

2. Disaster Risk Profile3

Bihar is affected by various disasters viz. floods, earthquakes, cyclone, heat wave and cold wave.

Table showing Decadal Multi- Disaster number of deaths (www.ncrb.nic.in )

Year Cold Wave Cyclone Earthquake Flood Heat Wave Landslide

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 2001 27 14 0 36 47 6

2002 55 4 2 126 22 1

2003 176 8 1 63 70 11

2004 72 9 0 204 32 10

2005 27 11 1 26 68 8

2006 81 4 3 16 52 2

2007 97 14 5 477 58 18

2008 103 4 0 408 28 0

2009 98 0 1 99 46 7

2010 156 26 0 94 95 9

2011 174 22 6 186 86 15

2.1 Floods:-
History of Flood in Bihar4

Bihar is Indias most flood-prone State, with 76 percent of the population, in the north Bihar
living under the recurring threat of flood devastation. About 68800 sq Km. out of total
geographical area of 94160 sq Km. comprising 73.06 percent is flood affected.

The plains of Bihar, adjoining Nepal, are drained by a number of rivers that have their
catchments in the steep and geologically nascent Himalayas. Kosi, Gandak, Burhi Gandak,
Bagmati, Kamla Balan, Mahananda and Adhwara Group of rivers originates in Nepal, carry high
discharge and very high sediment load and drops it down in the plains of Bihar. About 65% of
catchments area of these rivers falls in Nepal/Tibet and only 35% of catchments area lies in
Bihar. A review by Kale (1997) indicated that the plains of north Bihar have recorded the highest
number of floods during the last 30 years. In the years 1978, 1987, 1998, 2004 and 2007 Bihar
witnessed high magnitudes of flood. The total area affected by floods has also increased during
these years. Flood of 2004 demonstrates the severity of flood problem when a vast area of 23490

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 Sq Km. was badly affected by the floods of Bagmati, Kamla & Adhwara groups of rivers causing
loss of about 800 human lives, even when Ganga, the master drain was flowing low.

Table: Flood Damage during 2001 to 20115

Yea Area Popul Damage to Damage to Cattle Human Damag Total

r affec ation crops houses lost life e to damages
ted affect lost Public
in ed in Area Value Nos. Value in Nos. Utilities Crops,
(m. (milli (m. (Rs. Rs. Nos. in Rs. houses &
ha.) on) ha.) crore) crore crore public
utilities in
Rs. crore

2001 1.195 9.091 0.650 267.218 222008 173.584 565 231 183.538 624.340

2002 1.969 16.018 0.941 511.495 41914 526.215 1450 489 408.922 1446.632

2003 1.508 8.798 0.610 62.660 45262 20.320 106 251 1035.160 1118.140

2004 2.700 29.985 1.399 522.056 929773 758.095 3272 885 1030.496 2310.647

2005 0.460 2.639 0.135 11.640 5538 3.828 4 58 3050 18.518

2006 0.182 1.089 0.086 7.060 18637 12.260 31 36 84.562 103.882

2007 1.880 2.780 1.060 768.378 784328 831.445 2423 1287 642.415 2242.239

2008 0.882 6.212 0.367 34.196 297916 84.514 878 252 97.710 216.420

2009 1.105 2.338 0.040 21.830 7674 5.282 2 97 5.301 32.413

2010 0.199 1.075 0.010 3.119 15170 7.049 0 100 1.592 11.760

2011 0.000 0.581 0.163 59.870 34906 17792 39 143 25.786 103.448

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 Flood Zones Map of Bihar6

2.2 Earthquake7,8:-
According to Global Seismic Hazard Assessment Program (GSHAP) data, the state of Bihar lies
in a region with moderate to low to high seismic hazard. As per the 2002 Bureau of Indian
Standards (BIS) map, this state also falls in Zones III, IV & V. Historically, this region has
experienced earthquake in the M5.0-7.0 range.

Earthquake History of Bihar

The state of Bihar lies in the Gangetic Plain. This is a fore-deep, a down warp of the Himalayan
foreland, of variable depth, converted into flat plains by long-vigorous sedimentation. This is
known as a geosyncline and the Gangetic Plain is the Indo-Gangetic Geosyncline. This has
shown considerable amounts of flexure and dislocation at the northern end and is bounded on the
north by the Himalayan Frontal Thrust. The floor of the Gangetic trough (if see without all the
sediments) is not an even plain (5), but shows corrugated inequalities and buried ridges (shelf
faults). Western Bihar sits on the sub-surface Faizabad ridge while the eastern sections sit on the
Munger-Saharsa Ridge. the areas near the border with West Bengal lie on the Kosi Graben
(Purnea-Kasganj Graben). The central sections of Bihar lie (5) atop the Gandak depression and
East Uttar Pradesh shelf. The Himalayan Frontal Thrust does not run in Bihar, though, it runs
across the border in Nepal. Several faults have been identified in the region and some (1) have
shown evidence of movement during the Holocene epoch. The West Patna Fault runs in a NE-
SW direction from near Arrah in the south to the Nepalese border near Madhubani in the north.
Running almost parallel to it is the East Patna Fault which extends from the south-east of Patna
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in the south to the Nepalese border to the east of Madhubani. Another fault, this one also lying
parallel to the previous two, is the Munger-Saharsa Ridge Fault which runs from Biharsharif to
near Morang in eastern Nepal. Apart from these there are east-west running tear faults in the
region that control (5) the courses of the main rivers. However, it must be stated that proximity
to faults does not necessarily translate into a higher hazard as compared to areas located further
away, as damage from earthquakes depends on numerous factors such as subsurface geology as
well as adherence to the building codes.

The 1934 Bihar earthquake was one of the worst earthquakes in India's history. Some 30,000
people were said to have died. Munger and Muzaffarpur were completely destroyed. This 8.1
magnitude earthquake occurred on January 15, 1934 at around 2:13 PM (I.S.T.) (08:43 UTC) and
caused widespread damage in the northern Bihar and in Nepal. The epicentre for this event was
located in the eastern Nepal about 240 km away from Kathmandu.

Seismic Hazard

The seismic hazard map of India was updated in 2000 (4) by the Bureau of Indian Standards
(BIS). There are no major changes in the zones in Bihar. Districts such as Araria, Darbhanga,
Madhubani, Sitamarhi and Supaul lie in Zone V. The south-western districts of Aurangabad,
Bhojpur, Buxar, Gaya, Jahanabad, Kaimur, Nawada and Rohtas lie in Zone III. The remaining
districts of Bihar, including the capital city of Patna lie in Zone IV.

Earthquake Zones map of Bihar9

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 District Control Room10

Cyclone Zone Map of Bihar11

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Multi Hazard Map of Bihar12

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 3. INSTITUTIONAL SETUP13
Organizational Structure

MINISTER

Principal Secretary

Additional Secretary

Joint Secretary Joint Secretary

Deputy Secretary

OSD OSD OSD

Under Secretary

Section Officer Section Officer Section Officer Section Officer

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Functions and Objectives

As Bihar is vulnerable to different kinds of disaster due to its geographical and topographical
location, it is prone to Flood, Drought, Fire and Earthquake. According to seismic zoning, some
parts of the State are in Zone-IV & Zone-V, which can cause devastation as bad as Bhuj
(Gujarat) and Latur (Maharashtra).
The natural calamities result in recurring annual losses and minimal developmental gains. A need
for greater awareness and information sharing to bring the different agencies working in this area
to support at the time of National emergency with their skills and resources, which resulted in
development of information and ideas through Web Technology. The nodal agency for
information and gap analysis for the people of Bihar during the Natural and Human Emergency
is Disaster Management Department, Govt. of Bihar. A separate control room has been setup at
the Main Secretariat, Patna under the aegis of Commissioner-cum-Secretary, Disaster
Management Department, Patna which will help the suffering people in co-ordination with other
agencies, government and non government. Humanitarian Assistance had been provided to the
affected people in the districts during the previous year floods in the state. The lists are as
mentioned below:-
1. Distribute Community tents to Affected Area
2. Create temporary shelters, health camps, vetenary camps, nutritional feeding for pregnant
women and infants up to 6 years, temporary roofing for families & equipments support
for strengthening the state control room & district control room
3. Arrange Tarpaulin Sheets, Halogen tablets, Bleaching Powder & Equipments among
people of the affected area
4. Prepare and distribute family food packets

Disaster Risk Management Programme, which is working under Disaster Management

Department, Govt. of Bihar, has decided to setup District Control Rooms with the latest art of the
technology having computers, fax, scanners, copiers and Internet connectivity so as to develop
the data bank related to disasters, consequences and relief management for generating the
Knowledge base for the people of Bihar. An important part of this mission is providing
assistance to prepare for and recover from natural or man-made disasters that can result in great
human and economic losses.

4 INITIATIVES:-

4.1 Acts and Rules (with URL links)

The Disaster Management Act, 2005:In English

http://disastermgmt.bih.nic.in/Manual%20&%20Guideline/DM-Act-2005.pdf
Standard Operating Procedures: In English and Hindi
http://disastermgmt.bih.nic.in/Manual%20&%20Guideline/Standard%20Operating%20Procedur
es.pdf (Hindi)

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 The Disaster Management National Executive Committee (Procedure & Allowances etc.)
Rules, 2006:In English
http://www.ndmindia.nic.in/acts-rules/GSR597-598.pdf
The Disaster Management (National Institute of Disaster Management) Rules, 2006:In
English
http://www.ndmindia.nic.in/acts-rules/GSR680.pdf
The National Institute of Disaster Management Regulations, 2006:In English
http://www.ndmindia.nic.in/acts-rules/GSR681.pdf (Hindi)
The Disaster Management (Annual Report of National Authority) Rules, 2006:In English
http://www.ndmindia.nic.in/acts-rules/GSR682.pdf
Civil Defense Act 1968:In English
http://www.ndmindia.nic.in/acts-rules/CDAct1968.pdf
Civil Defense Rules 1968:In English
http://www.ndmindia.nic.in/acts-rules/CDRule1968.pdf
Civil Defense Regulation 1968:In English
http://www.ndmindia.nic.in/acts-rules/CDRegulation1968.pdf
The Notification of National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) Rules, 2008:In English
http://www.ndmindia.nic.in/flood-2008/gazette-dm.pdf
4.2 Publications

Standard Operating Procedure for Flood Disaster Management

http://disastermgmt.bih.nic.in/publications.htm
Departmental Minister Budget Speech for 2012-13
http://disastermgmt.bih.nic.in/publication/Departmental%20Minister%20Budget%20Speech%20
for%202012-13.pdf
Varshik prativedan 2011-12
http://disastermgmt.bih.nic.in/varshik_pertivedan_201213.htm
Standard Operating Procedure for Drinking Water Crisis Management
http://disastermgmt.bih.nic.in/sop%20drinking%20water%20crisis.htm
Standard Relief (MAANDAR)
http://disastermgmt.bih.nic.in/maandar.htm
Shatabdi Anna Kalash Yojna
http://disastermgmt.bih.nic.in/shatabdi_anna_kalash_yojna%20book.htm
Annual Report 2012-13
http://disastermgmt.bih.nic.in/varshik_pertivedan_2012-13.htm

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References:
1
http://gov.bih.nic.in/Profile/images/bihardistricts.gif
2
http://gov.bih.nic.in/Profile/default.htm
3
www.ncrb.nic.in
4
http://fmis.bih.nic.in/history.html
5
http://www.indiawaterportal.org/sites/indiawaterportal.org/files/ffm.2200-2291.27112012.pdf
6
http://disastermgmt.bih.nic.in/Map/images/FloodZoneBig.gif
7
http://asc-india.org/maps/hazard/haz-bihar.htm
8
http://asc-india.org/seismi/seis-bihar.htm
9
http://disastermgmt.bih.nic.in/Map/images/EarthquakeBig.gif
10
http://disastermgmt.bih.nic.in/Map/images/ControlRoomBig.gif
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http://disastermgmt.bih.nic.in/Map/images/CycloneBig.gif
12
http://disastermgmt.bih.nic.in/Map/images/HazardBig.gif
13
http://disastermgmt.bih.nic.in/

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