Warning systems suggested after glacier crash

The Parliamentary panel's recommendation for early warning systems follow the crash of glaciers in Uttarakhand in February which triggered flash floods that killed 70 people and over 100 are still missing.

New Delhi: After the glacial crash in Chamoli in Uttarakhand in February, a Parliamentary Committee on Home Affairs has suggested early warning systems in every district of the Himalayan region to alert communities at risk.

The committee headed by Congress MP Anand Sharma said in its report that the concerned states should be sensitized by the Ministry of Home Affairs about early warning systems to avert disasters.

The 231 reports of the committee on demands for grants has further said that the developmental projects taking place in the region should be considered from the environmental and ecological points of view.

"MHA may coordinate with the concerned agencies including NDMA, Ministry of Road, Transport and Highways etc to immediately ban the use of dynamites for developmental projects in the Himalayan region and make judicious use of technology particularly in high altitude Himalayan region to minimise the damage to ecology and environment," the committee said in its report.

The committee observed that excessive cutting of trees and use of dynamites on hills to build roads, tunnels, dams and other developmental and infrastructural projects is significantly weakening the surrounding hills and may cause an avalanche, landslides, flash flood and other catastrophes.

"There is a need to explore technological solutions including the use of cutting edge technology and best practices of other countries," the committee said in its report.

It further recommended that for ensuring the safety of the people of Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh, a network of meteorological and hydrological stations, monitoring stations and weather stations be set up at the earliest.

It also said that an urgent assessment needs to be made and organisations like the Indian Institute of Remote Sensing at Dehradun may also be tasked to conduct glaciological studies and prepare glacial lake inventory for the Himalayan region using remote sensing and geographical information system (GIS).

Considering that the Himalayan region of Ladakh, Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand are fragile and sensitive mountains, the committee emphasised that there is a need to establish and install state of the art infrastructure along with modern equipment which can monitor the movements of glaciers in the Himalayan region.

"The Home Ministry should put before the Ministry of Finance its specific requirements for the purpose and seek appropriate budgetary allocation at the Revised Estimate (RE) stage," the committee said in its report.

Speaking to ETV Bharat, Brigadier BK Khanna (retd) further highlighted the environmental impact assessment (EIA) and disaster impact assessment (DIA) in view of such a natural disaster.

"Development is necessary but that should not be done at the costs of environmental degradation," said Brigadier Khanna who is also a senior consultant at the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA).

He said that both EIA and DIA could give predictions to the authority on what kind of damage any calamity can bring.

Experts and researchers are divided on what caused the massive floods in Uttarakhand, some blame glacial lake outburst while others opine that rapid climate change and an avalanche was the cause behind the incident.

"There are several theories doing the rounds. Some say glacial lake outburst, some say that it was a nefarious game by China while few claim that the devastation had a CIA's connection where a radioactive device was lost in the region years ago during a secret expedition to Nanda Devi," added Brigadier Khanna.

Our scientists have gone there to ascertain what happens actually. Now, the question is what next. We need development and at the same time we have to consider that such development does not bring devastation, Brigadier Khanna said.

The disaster at Chamoli in February killed at least 70 persons and around 130 remain missing. Several communities from more than 13 border villages were severely affected by the devastation.

Meanwhile, the Home Ministry has informed the Parliamentary committee that the government of India has a good system of monitoring avalanche movement.

"There are various agencies under the Ministry of Science and Technology. Even Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) has an agency called snow and avalanche study establishment (SASE) which works in avalanche forecasting, artificial triggering and structural controls in snowbound mountainous areas," the Home Ministry informed.