WATCH: Glacial Lakes in Uttarakhand Extremely Sensitive; Experts to Inspect Vasudhara Glacier of Chamoli

Dehradun: The lakes formed in the glaciers of Uttarakhand are very sensitive, which is why the Government of India has given instructions to study all the glacier lakes present in the high Himalayan regions. Under the first phase, five glacier lakes present in the high Himalayan regions of Uttarakhand will be studied. For this, the Disaster Management Department has prepared an experts team, which will soon be sent to study the glacier lake. A team of experts from various institutions will reach the ground and assess the danger of the lake. So that, any possible disaster can be dealt with in the future. This year the Union Home Ministry had identified 13 such glacier lakes in Uttarakhand and divided these lakes into three categories based on their sensitivity. Out of these lakes, 5 have been placed in category A on the basis of greater sensitivity.

Highly Sensitive Lakes: Along with this, 4 less sensitive lakes have been placed in B category and 4 less sensitive lakes have been placed in C category. Out of 5 lakes in A category, one lake is in Chamoli and four lakes are in Pithoragarh district. Out of 4 lakes in B category, one is in Chamoli, one in Tehri and two lakes are in Pithoragarh district. Along with this, 4 lakes of C category are present in Uttarkashi, Chamoli and Tehri districts, which are less sensitive. According to the Disaster Management Department, a team is being sent to study Vasudhara Lake in Chamoli district. They will study how dangerous this lake is and how can it be treated?

5 Most Sensitive Lakes:  Earlier, two teams were formed in March itself to study two lakes from the five most sensitive districts, but till now no team has been able to go for inspection. This time, a team is going to inspect the Vasudhara lake in Chamoli district. The expert committee formed to study the lakes includes experts from Uttarakhand State Disaster Management Authority (USDMA), NIH Roorkee i.e. National Institute of Hydrology (NIH Roorkee), Indian Institute of Remote Sensing Dehradun (IIRS Dehradun), GIS Lucknow and Uttarakhand Landslide Mitigation Management Center (ULMMC).

A cause for concern: Meanwhile, Uttarakhand Disaster Management Secretary Vinod Kumar Suman said that there are five sensitive glacier lakes may become a cause of concern in the future. A detailed study of these lakes has not been done yet, but according to the primary study, these five glacier lakes have been found to be sensitive. He, however, said that there is no danger from these lakes for about 15 years. He said that experts teams that are going for the study, will include scientists from many institutions of the Government of India as well as disaster experts. A decision will be taken on the basis of their preliminary report, he said. The secretary said that some preliminary information on the condition of the lakes has been received from satellite data, but accurate information will be available only from study on the ground.

Talking to ETV Bharat, Dr. Kalachand Sai, former director of Wadia Himalayan Geology Institute, Dehradun, said that in the satellite image taken in the year 1968, Vasudhara lake was very small and in the satellite image taken in 2022-23, the lake is seen to be about 0.8 square kilometers larger. Even though the size of the lake has increased, it cannot be said that this lake is very sensitive. All the parameters have to be looked at. A moraine dam lake, this is located on a 1 to 2 degree slope and according to the study of Wadia Institute, there is no possibility of disaster coming from Vasudhara Lake, Dr Sai said.