Stiffness and damping properties of soil are essential parameters for any dynamic soil structure interaction analysis. Often the required stiffness and damping properties are obtained from the empirical curves. This paper presents the stiffness and damping properties of two naturally occurring sandy soils collected from a river bed in a highly active seismic zone in the Himalayan belt. A series of resonant column tests are performed on the soil specimens with relative densities representative of the field and with varying confining pressures. The test results are compared with the available empirical curves. Furthermore, a ground response analysis study is also carried out for a bridge site in the region using both the empirical curves and experimentally obtained curves. It has been observed that the application of empirical modulus and damping curves in ground response prediction often leads to underestimation of the seismic demands on the structures. The established soil curves can thus be utilized in performing seismic ground response studies for the design of new structures or requalification/reassessment of existing structures in the northeastern part of India. © 2017 Elsevier Ltd