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A seismic decision: On revision to India’s earthquake zoning, rollback

March 11, 2026 5 min read Geography Polity & Governance GS1 (Physical Geography Disaster Management) GS2 (Government Policies)
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What Happened

  • India's Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) issued a revised seismic zonation map in November 2025 under IS 1893 (Part 1): 2025, the seventh revision of the earthquake-resistant design standard, introducing a new Zone VI for the highest-risk Himalayan arc and reclassifying 61% of India's landmass under moderate-to-high seismic hazard.
  • The Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) raised "technical and financial concerns" in February 2026, warning that the revision would materially affect the design and execution of ongoing and future infrastructure projects, including metro rail projects.
  • On March 3, 2026, the government withdrew the November 2025 Gazette notification through a fresh Gazette notification, restoring the earlier IS 1893:2016 code with immediate effect.
  • Experts and seismologists have warned that rolling back the updated code undermines seismic safety standards precisely in high-risk zones, where more stringent construction norms are most urgently needed.

Static Topic Bridges

India's Seismic Zonation Framework (IS 1893)

India's earthquake hazard is codified through IS 1893, a standard maintained by the Bureau of Indian Standards under the Department of Consumer Affairs. The current operative version (IS 1893:2016) divides India into four seismic zones — Zone II (least hazard) through Zone V (Very High Damage Risk Zone) — based on Maximum Considered Earthquake (MCE) intensity using the MSK scale. Zone V covers the Himalayan arc, North-East India, Rann of Kutch, and Andaman and Nicobar Islands. The 2025 revision proposed a new Zone VI specifically for locked fault segments along the Himalayan arc using physics-based hazard modelling, a more scientifically rigorous approach than the older deterministic zoning.

  • IS 1893 is India's primary standard for earthquake-resistant structural design, first published in 1962 and periodically revised.
  • Zone factors (acceleration coefficients) range from 0.10 (Zone II) to 0.36 (Zone V) in the current code; the proposed Zone VI would have carried a higher factor.
  • BIS operates under the Bureau of Indian Standards Act, 2016, and the Department of Consumer Affairs under the Ministry of Consumer Affairs.
  • The 2025 revision used probabilistic seismic hazard analysis (PSHA), a globally accepted modern methodology, replacing the older descriptive zoning.

Connection to this news: The government's rollback reverted to the 2016 code, effectively shelving the Zone VI classification and the physics-based hazard maps that experts say better reflect actual earthquake risk along the Himalayan arc.

National Disaster Management Architecture

India's disaster management framework is governed by the Disaster Management Act, 2005, which established the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) under the Prime Minister as Chairperson, along with State Disaster Management Authorities (SDMAs) and District Disaster Management Authorities (DDMAs). The National Building Code (NBC), first published in 1970 and revised in 2005 and 2016, sets construction standards that incorporate seismic zone requirements from IS 1893. Under the NBC framework, state governments and local bodies are responsible for enforcing building codes, but compliance is notoriously weak across India's rapidly urbanising cities.

  • NDMA was constituted under the Disaster Management Act, 2005 (Section 3).
  • The National Institute of Disaster Management (NIDM) under the Ministry of Home Affairs provides capacity building and training.
  • India accounts for a significant proportion of global earthquake casualties due to poor building stock, particularly in Zone IV and V areas.
  • Seismic retrofitting of existing buildings remains a major policy gap; the NBC's earthquake provisions apply primarily to new construction.

Connection to this news: The rollback highlights a structural tension between long-term seismic safety (requiring more stringent — and costly — construction norms) and short-term infrastructure project economics, raising questions about how disaster risk reduction is weighed against developmental priorities.

Centre-State Dynamics in Disaster and Infrastructure Governance

Building regulations and urban planning are subjects under Entry 5 of the State List (Schedule VII of the Constitution), giving states primary legislative authority over construction norms. However, the National Building Code is a voluntary standard; states must individually adopt it into law for it to become mandatory. The Centre's power to influence building safety standards flows through central funding conditionalities, NDMA guidelines, and technical standards issued by BIS. The Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction (2015–2030), to which India is a signatory, calls for incorporating disaster risk into national and local development plans and infrastructure investments. [Unverified: specific percentage of Indian states that have formally adopted the NBC as mandatory legislation.]

  • Building regulations fall under the State List; the Centre's NBC is advisory unless states enact it.
  • Smart Cities Mission and AMRUT have incorporated building code compliance as part of urban development funding norms.
  • The Sendai Framework target E calls for substantially increasing the number of countries with national and local disaster risk reduction strategies by 2020.
  • India's National Disaster Management Plan (NDMP) 2019 aligns with the Sendai Framework priorities.

Connection to this news: The Centre's decision to roll back the seismic code revision — driven partly by infrastructure project cost concerns — illustrates the gap between national-level disaster risk policy commitments and the actual enforcement of safety standards, particularly when economic interests of central agencies are involved.

Key Facts & Data

  • IS 1893 (Part 1): 2025 — seventh revision of India's earthquake-resistant design code, issued November 2025, withdrawn March 3, 2026.
  • New seismic map proposed Zone VI for highest-risk Himalayan arc segments; 61% of India's landmass classified under moderate-to-high hazard under the revision.
  • BIS operates under the Bureau of Indian Standards Act, 2016 (Department of Consumer Affairs).
  • Current operative code: IS 1893:2016 — four zones (II, III, IV, V); Zone V factor = 0.36g.
  • Withdrawal triggered by MoHUA concerns about impact on metro rail and ongoing infrastructure projects.
  • Disaster Management Act, 2005 — statutory basis for NDMA, SDMAs, DDMAs.
  • National Building Code 2016 — voluntary standard; state adoption determines legal enforceability.