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Himalayan Disaster: Need To Be Extra Careful

By Linus Garg
First publised on 2021-02-09 02:46:35

About the Author

Sunil Garodia Linus tackles things head-on. He takes sides in his analysis and it fits excellently with our editorial policy. No 'maybe's' and 'allegedly' for him, only things in black and white.

In a tragic disaster in Uttarakhand, a portion of the Nanda Devi glacier broke off at Joshimath in the Chamoli district, triggering an avalanche. The snow fell in the Alaknanda river system and created a stream of water powerful enough to wash away dams. Floods destroyed houses and cuased extensive damage to the adjacent environment. Since the interlinked Dhauli Ganga, Rishi Ganga and Alaknanda were heavily flooded, extensive damage was reported to two power projects, NTPC's Tapovan-Vishnugad hydel project and the Rishi Ganga hydel project, with some reports (verified by an aerial survey of the IAF) suggesting that the Tapovan dam has been washed away. Though the DRDO, the Army and the ITBP, along with other agencies, NGOs and thousands of local residents, are engaged in continuous rescue efforts to save the lives of the trapped workers, there is very real fear that a number of them have either been washed away or were killed by mud and sludge.

Uttarakhand had witnessed a deadly event in June 2013 at Kedarnath, when an unprecedented cloudburst had caused deadly flooding and landslides which killed over five thousand people. The present disaster, although not as huge, still brings in focus the ecological vulnerability of the Uttarakhand region and the care that should be taken while planning projects that require significant human intervention. The lithology of the Himalayan range is vulnerable. This must be factored in when undertaking construction activity in the area.  Climate change, global warming and unbridled construction activity, both public and private, is the root cause of such disasters in hilly regions. Since ice is melting faster, there is always a chance of glaciers breaking off. Unbridled construction activity in an area where the rocks and the soil are softer makes them vulnerable. Landslides can happen frequently. The government must draft rules that ensure that special care is taken for the environment before any human intervention in the entire Himalayan range. Otherwise, such disasters will happen more frequently, putting infrastructure, lives and property at severe risk.

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