Uttarakhand Disaster Management Dept to rope in glacier scientist

There is no glacier scientist in the Disaster Management Department of the Himalayan state of Uttarakhand. Because of the way the nature of disasters is constantly changing in the state, the process of appointment of a dedicated meteorologist and glacier scientist in the department is in progress.

Dehradun:Uttarakhand's disaster management department, which is continuously upgrading itself since the 2013 disaster, is expected to get a dedicated meteorologist and glacier scientist to improve the department's capabilities in dealing with natural disasters.

Speaking to ETV Bharat, Disaster Management Additional Secretary Savin Bansal said, "IIRS is continuously monitoring the Bhagirathi, Mandakini, Alaknanda, and Kali river valleys of Uttarakhand with the help of real-time satellite images. Apart from this, the ground team of disaster management also keeps on doing recce on these districts from time to time."

"The department is constantly thinking about how important the role of glaciers in Uttarakhand is. For this, the Disaster Management Department desperately needs a glacier scientist. Apart from this, a meteorologist is also very important due to the natural calamities due to continuous bad weather in Uttarakhand, " he added.

Bansal said, "The departmental structure of disaster management constantly changes according to the needs. At the same time, because of the way the nature of disasters is constantly changing in the state, the process of appointment of a dedicated meteorologist and glacier scientist in the department is in progress."

Meanwhile, DP Doval, a senior glacier scientist who is serving at the Wadia Institute for a long time said, "About 10 percent of the land area in Uttarakhand is covered with snow, in which glaciers are also present. There are more than one thousand glaciers present in Uttarakhand. These glaciers not only supply water for 12 months of the year to the life-giving rivers originating from the Himalayas, but the glaciers and snowy peaks present in the Himalayas to a large extent also determine the weather pattern in the entire Uttarakhand and surrounding areas."

"There are many such rivers, including Ganga, Yamuna, Kali river, Mandakini, and Alaknanda, originating from Uttarakhand, which directly originates from the glaciers and have plenty of water throughout the year. More importantly, it is the country's property and there is no land dispute or water dispute on these rivers. That is, it is the property of Uttarakhand and the country itself, " he added.

"I have done research on different glaciers of the world, including the glaciers of Antarctica. The glaciers of Uttarakhand are very different from other countries. These are very weak and freshly settled glaciers. The way weather pattern is constantly changing due to which it is continuously affecting the glaciers present in the higher Himalayan regions. The snow here is continually melting, so the glaciers here are becoming quite raw. He said that it is very important to keep a close watch on these glaciers, "Doval said.