CAUSES OF FAILURE OF FOUNDATIONS AND STRUCTURES AND SAFETY AGAINST THE HORIZONTAL MOVEMENT OF THE EARTH ADJOINING THE STRUCTURES

Horizontal movement of the earth adjoining the structure is effective in the case of clayey soils and the black -cotton soils, Such soils become soft and swell when wet loosing their bearing power considerably and shrink and crack when dry and the rain and the sun are the effective agents of the change of seasons. Underground open drains should be provided to drain out the excess water when the sub soil water level rises . For overcoming the damaging effects of shrinkage the foundations should be taken sufficiently deep. It has also been suggested that that fast growing and water seeking trees should not be planted within 18 metres near the building and trees planted along side roads have caused marked depressions along the edges of the roads and underneath cement concrete paths, where safety of the existing structures may be affected by:-- (1) Excavation in the immediate vicinity which may cause a reduction in support to the structure in support to the structure (2) Mining or tunneling operation in the neighbourhood. (3) Adjacent structures which may impose additional loads on the foundation strata or additional stresses in earth work and supporting structures.(4) Vibrations and ground movements resulting from traffic, piling or explosion in the immediate vicinity. (5) Shrinkage of clay soils due to weather, transpiration of plants. (6) Lowering of the ground water level by pumping from wells may cause settlement of the ground surface over a wide area. (7) A rise in the ground water level may cause movement of the foundation strata. As such it is necessary to follow the safety measures of the research based on the captioned subject matter deliberation and do needful under code for consideration in the interest of infrastructure safety against the unequal distribution of loads and damages :-- Er Fateh chand Guleria, Director RTI welfare Association registered number HPCD, 3552 , Bilaspur HIMACHAL PRADESH phone number, 9459334377