Numerical Analysis of a Landslide-Affected Site at Koottickal, Kottayam

In recent years, Kerala is facing heavy rainfall and due to that landslides and floods are occurring frequently. In 2021 heavy landslides occurred at Koottickal, Kottayam and life of the local people and embankments were in critical conditions. To suggest solutions for the problem, stability analyses were conducted. Field studies are time consuming and not feasible with the altered topography, hence numerical analysis plays a major role in the embankment studies. Finite element method by PLAXIS 3D is used in the numerical analysis of slope stability of embankment. The ground improvement techniques play a crucial role in the stability of embankments. The present study relates with the determination of stability of embankment according to the factor of safety and deformations with and without geogrid for toe angles 30°,45° and 60°.The factor of safety is increased by twice the initial value when the geogrid is placed into the embankments. Hence it is concluded that geogrid can be effectively used to prevent the slope failure due to frequently occurring landslides.