Originating from Vasudhara Tal, perhaps the largest glacial lake in Uttarakhand, the Dhauli Ganga flows in a meandering course, which takes it through the Nanda Devi National Park.
The water level of the Dhauli Ganga river at Joshimath flowed at a perilously high level, breaching all records, Central Water Commission officials said after a part of Nanda Devi glacier broke off in Uttarakhand's Chamoli district leading to massive floods.
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.
It is a 165 MW run-of-the-river scheme proposed in Dhauli Ganga river in Darma valley.
The Army on Sunday deployed four columns and two medical teams in the rescue of people affected by a massive flood in the Dhauli Ganga river after a part of the Nanda Devi glacier broke off at Joshimath in Chamoli district of Uttarakhand, officials said.
The U'khand CM appealed to people to not make the tragedy an occasion for building an "anti-development narrative"
The teams carried out a helicopter survey of the area on Tuesday to find clues as to what led to the massive flash floods that swept everything on the way.
A portion of the Nanda Devi glacier broke off in Uttarakhand's Chamoli district on Sunday, triggering an avalanche and a deluge in the Alaknanda river system that washed away hydroelectric stations, leaving at least seven people dead and 125 missing who are feared dead.
The massive flood in the Dhauli Ganga river triggered by a glacial burst in Uttarakhand's Chamoli district on Sunday came as a grim reminder of the Kedarnath deluge of 2013 which led to widespread devastation in the ecologically fragile Himalayan region.
Search operation at the project site has been underway on a war footing basis for a fortnight since it bore the brunt of an avalanche triggered by a glacier burst over Rishi Ganga in Chamoli district on February 7.
Uttarakhand Director-General of Police Ashok Kumar informed that 168 people are still missing following the glacier burst.
Multiple teams of the force, with personnel wearing protective gear and helmets, were rushed to the Tapovan power project site from their 1st battalion base in Joshimath and the ITBP mountaineering and skiing institute located nearby in Auli to launch search and rescue works.
Tapovan Hydro-Electric Power Dam, also known as Rishi Ganga Project was completely washed off following a glacier burst in the Chamoli district, said the Indian Air Force's initial report as Advanced Light Helicopter (ALH) deployed at Joshimath has undertaken recce of affected areas.
A 13.2 MW small hydro project on the Rishiganga river was swept away in the glacier burst in Uttarakhand on Sunday, but there is no danger of floods in the downstream areas as the water level has been contained.
More than 150 labourers working in a power project are missing, officials said.
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.
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.
'The present government swears by Hinduism. But we lost three of our sants during earlier BJP regimes.'
After a comprehensive analysis is undertaken to find the reasons of this incident, "we will build an elaborate plan to avert any potential tragedy going forward", Rawat said.
A multi-agency operation to rescue an estimated 34 people trapped inside a big tunnel at Tapovan was carried out overnight after a glacier burst-triggered deluge killed 10 people in Uttarakhand's Chamoli district while over 140 are missing, officials said on Monday.
'Unlike in the Kedarnath floods of 2013, which happened due to heavy rains, no such thing happened in Chamoli.' 'The damage was done only because of the hot sun.'
This is also the base of the ITBP's Battalion No. 1, tasked with guarding the Line of Actual Control with China that runs along the state.
'The cracks I saw yesterday were the largest I have seen in my life. We are scared.'
Asserting that the agitation against the Centre's farm laws is a people's movement that will not fail, Bharatiya Kisan Union leader Rakesh Tikait on Sunday said there will be no 'ghar wapsi' till protesting farmers' demands are met.
Making a statement in the House "regarding an avalanche in Chamoli District of Uttarakhand", the Union minister said these inputs were based on the information received till Monday 5 pm from the state government.
The death toll from the Uttarakhand glacier disaster rose to 31 with five more bodies being recovered, officials said on Tuesday as multiple agencies raced against time to reach about 30 workers trapped inside a tunnel in a power project site and 175 people remained missing.
'We need an early warning system in India.'
Using drones and remote-sensing equipment, rescue teams intensified efforts on Wednesday to reach the 25-35 men trapped in a sludge-choked tunnel since the Uttarakhand glacier disaster three days ago and more than 170 remained missing, hopes of finding them alive fading with every passing hour.
Uttarakhand Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat said saving lives and extending all help to the families of the deceased is the state government's priority.
'Above 2,000 metres the gradient of the Himalayas is very steep and if you build any infrastructure (roads, dams, hydro power projects) in these regions, it will not be able to sustain these events (the onslaught of debris that comes down with great speeds).'
'Geological processes occur at time scales that are beyond human imagination, but we need to understand these events.'
'The 100-metre stretch from the opening of this tunnel is completely flooded with debris; the oxygen supply (through the pipes) too had gotten over and the chances of any survivors inside this tunnel are very bleak. Nobody has been able to talk to the people trapped inside'
'We have been appealing to various governments for so many years that there should be no dams in the Himalayas, but no one listens.' 'Nature responded in its own way.'
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