Mountain belts like the Himalaya have both sustained and destroyed humans and closely affect our lives. Mountain building processes result in earthquakes and landslides which are major hazards to the human civilisation. Major earthquakes that activate the main frontal thrust (MFT) are particularly devastating.My research group is involved in understanding the kinematics of the Himalaya that result in the these earthquakes by undertaking a detailed study of the main frontal fault zone that results in extreme pulverisation of the rocks (Fig. 1) and building of Himalayan topography (Fig. 2). We have discovered that:

■ The process has also uplifted river-bed gravels and warped them.
■ Long term effect of the process is to build frontal topography and landscape in the Himalaya and extend the mountain earthquake-by-earthquake into the gangetic plains.
■ Our study essentially records how earthquake processes build mountains and points to an omnipresent seismic hazard that will keep shaking and stirring humans in and around the Himalaya in the near and far future.
■ In a scenario where earthquakes will occur in the future, our best bet is to build dwellings that do not collapse during large earthquakes.