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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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