MANGALURU: Faculty members from NITK Surathkal are working on the development of new techniques, to protect the Indian coast from tsunamis. The development of these new techniques, is a part of a research and development project sponsored by the ministry of ports, shipping and waterways.
A group of faculty members have been awarded a research grant of Rs 45 lakh. It is led by Babloo Chaudhary, assistant professor, department of civil engineering. He is the principal investigator, and has conducts research in areas of development of countermeasures, for both natural and man-made disasters, including earthquakes, tsunamis, landslides, floods, and others. Professor Katta Venkataramana and assistant professor G Sridhar, are co-investigators.
Chaudhary said that a breakwater is a coastal structure, that is built to protect the seashores from the adverse effects of sea waves, but it is vulnerable to tsunamis. Many breakwaters were damaged, and even collapsed during the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, and the 2011 Great East Japan earthquake and tsunami.
