Shrinking glaciers

The report of the parliamentary standing committee on water resources, tabled in Parliament on Wednesday, has rightly emphasised that a dedicated Mountain Hazard and Research Institute be set up to oversee and coordinate the work done by various organisations in the multi-dimensional field of global warming-induced glacial melting in the Himalayas. This is necessary as the government, surprisingly, lacks reliable data on the loss of glacial volume or warming since 1950 or the loss projected by 2100 because none of its organisations, including the GSI, ISRO and GST, have conducted specific studies on the subject. The data is crucial for anticipating and mitigating potential cataclysmic changes that make the region flood-prone. For, any change in the glacial melt impacts the hydrological cycles of major rivers like the Indus, Brahmaputra and Ganga and the areas they serve, including the hills and plains.

Most assessments point to an alarming situation and red-flag adverse socio-economic ramifications. Last February, Parliament was informed by the Ministry of Earth Sciences, on the basis of a study, that Himalayan glaciers had lost ice 10 times more quickly over the last few decades than the average. Significantly, an array of studies monitored by various government institutes of India have also reported an accelerated heterogeneous mass loss in the glaciers. Glacial melting leads to the formation of glacial lakes, which can accelerate flash floods, impacting hydel projects and agro practices. A well-coordinated government study looking into various dimensions rather than isolated works done so far would put things in a better perspective, leading to a holistic approach to addressing the hydro-geological hazards.

Concrete scientific and preventive work is essential as the Himalayan region has suffered extreme weather events recently. Still fresh in memory are the devastating floods of Pakistan in 2022 and of Chamoli in 2021; the 2013 flash floods of Uttarakhand occurred after a portion of the Nanda Devi glacier fell into the Rishi Ganga river, exponentially increasing the volume of the water. There are untold socio-economic consequences of glacial melting. As tackling global warming remains a challenging task, the urgency of mitigating glacial melting cannot be overemphasised.