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    EYE ON INDIA                                                      SEPTEMBER 11, 2026       |  The Indian Eye                    8

                          Flood & Fury: How Nepal

                tragedy is a warning of climate

                                           disasters to come

            The deadly flash floods in the Himalayas show how warming temperatures are interacting with fragile geology,

                            extreme weather and human activity to create increasingly unpredictable disasters.

            OUR BUREAU                                                                                            said that “sustainable development
                                                                                                                  cannot wait for fragmented efforts to
            Kathmandu / New Delhi
                                                                                                                  converge.” What is needed, he argues,
                  he devastating flash floods that                                                                is “one-window visioning, integrated
                  swept through Nepal’s Rasuwa                                                                    planning and swift implementation”
            Tdistrict on August 26 may have                                                                       involving  scientists,  policymakers,
            been  triggered  by  an  ice-and-rock                                                                 planners and local communities.
            avalanche, but scientists and disaster                                                                    That approach would require
            experts say the tragedy points to a                                                                   much more than post-disaster re-
            much larger and increasingly urgent                                                                   lief. The report calls for cumulative
            problem: a Himalayan environment                                                                      environmental assessments cover-
            being destabilised by climate change.                                                                 ing entire river basins, geological
                The incident has renewed con-                                                                     studies before roads and tunnels
            cerns  about  the  vulnerability  of  the                                                             are constructed, tighter controls on
            Himalayan region, where rising tem-                                                                   slope cutting, systematic monitoring
            peratures are altering glaciers, snow                                                                 of glaciers and permafrost, and re-
            cover and permafrost while monsoon                                                                    al-time  warning  systems  for  glacial
            rainfall continues to expose already                                                                  lake outbursts.
            fragile mountain slopes.          A drone view of the devastation in the Devighat area following a mud-laden flash flood caused   It also argues for greater
                Nepal, according to the report,   by an outburst in the Trishuli River, in Nuwakot on Thursday. The current Nepal flash-flood   cross-border sharing of satellite,
            effectively sits on a “geological prec-                                                               hydrological and seismic data. This
            ipice”. It lies at the collision zone of        death toll stands at more than 1,200 (ANI Video Grab)  is particularly important in the Hi-
            the Indian and Eurasian tectonic                                                                      malayas, where rivers, glaciers and
            plates, making it vulnerable to earth-  up several folds in recent times” as   account for a substantial proportion   geological systems do not follow na-
            quakes,  landslides  and  rockfalls.  Its   climate change and high-mountain   of landslides.         tional boundaries.
            steep terrain, fractured geology and   heating become increasingly pro-  This does not establish that infra-  The Himalayas are not simply
            powerful river systems add another   nounced.  More  than  100  flood-re-  structure caused the Rasuwa disaster.   a Nepalese problem. The region
            layer of risk.                    lated  events,  including  glacial  lake   But it does underline how poorly   provides water to a vast population
                Climate change is now introduc-  outbursts, cloudbursts, landslides and   planned development can increase   across South Asia and supports
            ing a new variable into this already   major river floods, have been docu-  the consequences of an extreme nat-  communities, agriculture and ener-
            unstable system. Glaciers are retreat-  mented in Nepal since 1954.  ural event.                      gy systems far downstream. As Sri
            ing, high-altitude landscapes are be-  For Nepal Prime Minister Balen-  The vulnerability is particularly   Sri Ravi Shankar put it, the Himala-
            coming  less  stable  and  glacial  lakes   dra Shah, the latest tragedy has there-  significant because the same narrow   yas are “a lifeline for over 1.9 billion
            are expanding. Nepal has thousands   fore become an argument for a much   valleys that are attractive for hydro-  inhabitants”, making regional coop-
            of glacial lakes, some of which have   wider international response. Shah   power and transport infrastructure   eration essential.
            the potential to produce catastrophic   has said that “climate change is the   are also natural channels for water,   The Himalay Unnati Mission,
            glacial lake outburst floods.     world’s shared responsibility”, while   ice, rocks and debris. The August 26   which has brought together scientists,
                The concern is not simply that   calling for climate justice and inter-  disaster demonstrated how quickly a   ecologists and disaster experts to
            individual disasters will become more   national financial compensation rath-  high-altitude event can travel down-  study recurring Himalayan disasters,
            severe, but that different hazards   er than what he described as simple   stream and destroy infrastructure   has similarly warned that “the peo-
            could begin interacting with each oth-  post-disaster assistance.   far from its point of origin. Scientif-  ple of the Himalayas cannot be left
            er. The report describes the combina-  The report, however, also raises   ic assessments have also warned that   to face these disasters alone, and no
            tion of steep slopes, geological weak-  questions about how development is   early-warning systems could have re-  single agency can solve them.”
            ness, intense rainfall, river erosion   taking place in the mountains. Roads,   duced the human cost of such events.  For the Himalayas, the ques-
            and changing glaciers as a “perfect   tunnels and hydropower projects re-  Experts are now arguing that di-  tion is no longer whether another
            combination for cascading disaster.”  quire cutting slopes, removing vege-  saster preparedness cannot remain   disaster will occur. It is whether
                There are already signs that such   tation, blasting rock, excavating tun-  divided between separate agencies   governments and communities can
            events are becoming more frequent.   nels and altering natural drainage.   and countries. Dr Eklabya Sharma, a   build systems capable of detecting,
            The report notes that the frequency   Research cited in the report suggests   mountain ecologist and former dep-  preparing for and surviving the next
            of high-mountain incidents has “gone   that construction-related cut slopes   uty director general of ICIMOD, has   one before it arrives.

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