Seven workers have died and three are currently missing after a tunnel under construction at a hydroelectric project site in Chamoli district, Uttarakhand, was inundated with water and debris following landslides and subsidence.
Mountaineer Baljeet Kaur, known for scaling five 8000-metre peaks in a single season, is one of four recipients of the Tenzing Norgay National Adventure Awards for 2024. Other awardees include Skalzang Rigzin for land adventure, Rimo Saha for water adventure, and Shiv Prasad Chamoli for lifetime achievement, recognising their exceptional contributions to adventure sports in India.
Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami has directed officials to strengthen regular monitoring and safety measures for 13 identified 'sensitive' glacial lakes in the state, citing potential risks in hilly regions.
A senior cryosphere specialist has warned of a potential secondary flash flood in Nepal due to debris from an ice-rock avalanche accumulating at a river confluence, creating a temporary dam that is collecting water.
Soaring above the mighty Chenab River, this record-breaking railway bridge is a sight to behold.
Following devastating flash floods in Nepal, experts are calling for systematic scientific assessments of glaciers to understand and mitigate hazards, alongside the development of a robust land use policy for the Himalayan region. The floods, which killed over 460 people and left thousands missing, are believed to be linked to climate change impacts on glaciers and permafrost.
'There needs to be a monitoring of glaciers in high altitude areas and one needs to check regularly how geological changes are taking place.' 'We can mitigate that by regular monitoring but unfortunately, hardly any monitoring is happening.' 'And without monitoring those higher altitudes of Himalayas, people are suffering.'
Heavy rainfall has disrupted major pilgrimages in Uttarakhand, including the Kedarnath route and the Kailash-Mansarovar Yatra, prompting the IMD to issue red and orange alerts for extremely heavy rainfall across several districts.
Uttarakhand Police have arrested Pramod Nautiyal, a suspended employee of the Shri Badrinath-Kedarnath Temple Committee (BKTC), in connection with alleged irregularities in the handling of donations at the Badrinath temple. Nautiyal, formerly PA to the BKTC chairman, faces questioning after an FIR was lodged and an inquiry committee found prima facie evidence against him.
'This is no longer a single-hazard problem; it is a cascading, multi-hazard problem. A landslide never occurs in isolation. This entire chain is the cascading effect of what looks, at first, like a single disaster.'
A group of Nihangs, armed with traditional weapons, stormed a gurdwara in Rudraprayag, taking a Sikh devotee hostage on the roof to demand the release of four sect members arrested after a clash in Chamoli.
Heavy rainfall in Uttarakhand has led to widespread road closures due to landslides, affecting 126 roads including two national highways. A wall collapse in Dehradun injured a woman and displaced seven families, while restoration efforts are underway across the state to clear debris and restore connectivity.
The probe into the alleged Badrinath Temple donation theft case is gaining pace as former temple officer of Badrinath Temple Rajendra Chauhan has been arrested by the Special Investigation Team (SIT) following four hours of questioning on Friday.
Rescue operations race against time in Nandanagar, Chamoli district, following a devastating cloudburst that claimed seven lives and left several people trapped under debris.
An employee of the Shri Badrinath-Kedarnath Temple Committee (BKTC) has been suspended following a preliminary inquiry into alleged irregularities in the management of donations at Badrinath Dham. Both the BKTC and the Uttarakhand government have launched separate investigations into the matter, which gained attention after social media allegations and a formal complaint. The government committee is expected to submit its report within 15 days.
The Nihangs have called off their planned protest march in Uttarakhand related to a recent dispute at the Karnaprayag market in Chamoli and a gurdwara in Nagrasu.
The Badrinath-Kedarnath Temple Committee has formed a four-member panel to investigate alleged irregularities in pilgrims' offerings and donations at Badrinath Dham. The allegations, which went viral on social media, have sparked political controversy in Uttarakhand, with the Congress demanding strict action. The inquiry will examine CCTV footage and statements, with a report due in seven days.
Over 150 Nihangs are camping at Paonta Sahib gurdwara in Himachal Pradesh, refusing to return to Punjab until four members of their sect, arrested in Uttarakhand following a clash with locals, are released. The group had previously attempted to force entry into Uttarakhand and clashed with police, leading to an ongoing standoff.
Landslides and flooding triggered by heavy rain have devastated villages in Chamoli district, Uttarakhand, leaving many feared trapped and injured. Rescue operations are underway.
Flash floods ravaged Dharali, around 264 km from Chamoli, burying half of the mountain village in a fast-flowing mudslide of slush, rubble, and water.
A man in Uttarakhand, India, allegedly committed suicide after severely assaulting his wife and son. The incident occurred in Oder village, Chamoli district. The wife and son are receiving medical treatment.
The bodies of the last four of the trapped labourers were pulled out from the site of the avalanche-hit Border Roads Organisation (BRO) camp in Chamoli on Sunday, taking the death toll to eight as authorities ended the nearly 60-hour rescue operation.
The transfer of land near the Indian Military Academy (IMA) for a purported Islamic educational institution is under investigation, raising security concerns and political accusations.
A loco train carrying workers for tunnel excavation during the night shift was about two kilometres inside the tunnel when another loco train coming from the opposite direction lost control and collided with it.
On August 5, 1953, Jawaharlal Nehru sent a strange note to the foreign secretary. It is worth mentioning because it was symptomatic of the lack of knowledge about Western Tibet in India and in South Block in particular, notes Claude Arpi.
A 23-year-old man died and two others were injured after a Mercedes SUV allegedly rammed into them in Delhi's Vasant Kunj area. Police have apprehended the driver and are investigating the incident.
A landslide on the Kedarnath route in Uttarakhand killed two pilgrims and injured six, while heavy rain led to the temporary suspension of the Char Dham and Hemkund Sahib pilgrimages.
The National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) had been struggling hard for the past 32 hours, hoping for life in Kunwar Singh's house, buried under the rubble. Cutter machines were used to cut through the sludge, creating a path for entry.
A devastating flashflood in the Kheer Ganga river on August 5 demolished nearly half of Dharali -- the key stopover en route to Gangotri with many hotels and homestays, and neighbouring Harsil, where an Army camp bore the brunt of the flood fury, barely giving time to the victims to run to safety.
Glimpses from India and around the world that will make you smile and cry.
The Uttar Pradesh government on Sunday asked authorities in all districts on the banks of the Ganga river to be on a high alert and continuously monitor the water level after a glacier broke off in Joshimath in Uttarakhand's Chamoli district.
'The lakes up there were already at the brink due to accumulated rainwater, and then snowmelt occurred.' 'When one lake breached, it triggered a cascading effect -- other lakes breached subsequently.'
Two teams of glaciologists will head to Joshimath-Tapovan on Monday to study the causes of massive flood caused after a part of the Nanda Devi glacier broke off in Uttarakhand's Chamoli district, the director of the Wadia Institute of Himalayan Geology said.
'What we are witnessing is not a freak incidence or a freak occurrence, but a new climate reality where warming oceans, monsoon variability and local geography are combining to produce extreme events.'
Forty-one Border Road Organisation labourers working to clear snow near the high altitude border village of Mana in Uttarakhand's Chamoli district were trapped under an avalanche on Friday.
'The government only wakes up after devastation.' 'The government does not understand the gravity of the situation nor they do not want to understand the gravity of the situation.'
The avalanche hit the BRO camp between Mana and Badrinath between 5:30 am and 6 am on Friday, burying the workers inside eight containers and a shed, according to the Army.
North India is shivering under an intense cold wave as temperatures plummet across the region.
A total of 430 BRO workers were at the road-construction site when the avalanche occurred on Friday, Uttarakhand Director General of Police Ashok Kumar said.
Heavy rains continued to wreak havoc in Uttarakhand where seven persons of a family were killed when the ceiling of their house collapsed in Chamoli district on Wednesday, while four persons were killed when a machine engaged in repairing a road fell into a ditch in Garhwal.
