Warming Himalayas demand a rethink on development, Pg6

Key Highlights:

• The Indian Himalayan Region (IHR) faces frequent and severe climate-induced disasters due to unheeded calls for sustainable development.
• High mountains of Asia are warming at 0.3°C per decade, nearly twice the global average, leading to glacier retreat and increased disaster risk.
• Reports released on March 21, 2026, by the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD) indicate that ice-loss rates across the Hindu Kush Himalaya (HKH) have doubled since 2000.
• A catastrophic event on August 26 saw a 600-meter section of ice and rock collapse from Langtang Himal in Nepal, causing a flash flood.
• Nepal, contributing only 0.1% of global greenhouse gas emissions, is demanding compensation for climate-induced loss and damage.

Himalayas in Crisis.jpg

Detailed Insights:

• The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) and the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) have consistently warned about accelerated warming in high mountain regions.
• Warming is not uniform across the 3,500-kilometre Himalayan range, with the western Himalaya experiencing faster warming, especially at night and during winter.
• Rising temperatures alter the balance between snow accumulation and melt, making glaciers more susceptible to melting and increasing their flow speed.
• Permafrost thaw, caused by rising temperatures, destabilizes steep rock walls, triggering avalanches, landslides, and debris flows.
• The August 26 collapse in Nepal, equivalent to a magnitude 5.2 seismic event, dammed the Lhende Khola, a tributary of the Bhote Koshi river, before unleashing a "concrete-like mud and debris" flash flood.
• Mitigation strategies include regional cooperation, real-time data exchange, high-altitude surveillance (satellite, drone), and acoustic/hydrological sensors.
• Continuous monitoring and engineered drainage for glacial lakes are crucial to prevent outburst floods.
• River flood zoning needs to be re-evaluated based on valley slope to appropriately locate infrastructure.
• The Avay Shukla Committee and Ravi Chopra Committee recommended restricting major hydropower projects or subjecting construction above 2,200 meters to expert review.
• The proposed Chenab-Beas river-linking project in Himachal Pradesh requires serious reconsideration due to its location in a fragile ecosystem.
• A moratorium on all development projects in the IHR is suggested until rigorous reassessment for environmental impact, hazard-averseness, and climate resilience.

Scientific/Technical Concepts Involved:

• Glacier Retreat: The process where glaciers melt faster than they accumulate snow, causing them to shrink and recede.
• Permafrost: Ground, including rock or soil, that remains frozen at or below 0°C for at least two consecutive years.
• Supraglacial Lakes: Meltwater pools that form on the surface of glaciers.
• Moulins: Vertical shafts or conduits through which meltwater drains from the surface of a glacier to its base.
• Subglacial/Englacial Water Channels: Water pathways located beneath (subglacial) or within (englacial) a glacier, influencing its movement.