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.
Scientists are examining how a possible glacial collapse and ice-rock avalanche may have triggered the devastating flash floods along Nepal's Bhote Koshi River, with preliminary assessments indicating that debris may have temporarily blocked the Lhende River and created a landslide dam that subsequently gave way.
A scientist from the Wadia Institute of Himalayan Geology highlights how climate change, including glacial retreat, shifting precipitation patterns, and rising nighttime temperatures, is exacerbating the risk of flash floods and landslides in the Himalayas, as seen in recent disasters in Nepal and Uttarakhand.
'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 senior Geological Survey of India official warns that the Himalayas are vulnerable to cascading disasters, where one high-altitude event can trigger a chain of destructive events downstream, as evidenced by Nepal's recent floods. He stresses the need for integrated monitoring using satellite data and ground investigations to identify high-risk areas and improve preparedness in the Indian Himalayas.
The Tamil Nadu government has appointed film producer K Venkata Narayana as the state's special representative to the government in New Delhi, evoking sharp criticism from the Bharatiya Janata Party and other opposition parties on Friday.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has warned of a possible cloudburst-like spell in Nashik on Tuesday and stated that the state machinery is on high alert, with heavy rains expected to continue until July 8. Citizens are urged to avoid unnecessary travel as authorities manage landslides, swollen rivers, and rescue operations.
64 years after the Panshet Dam burst claimed 1,000 lives, the tragedy stands as both a haunting memory and a vital lesson in engineering caution.
'Monsoon is the pran (life) of our water system.' 'A weak monsoon will have a very negative impact on crops and people's lives.'
Heavy rains in Nanded, Maharashtra, have caused severe flooding, leading to the evacuation of hundreds of residents as the Godavari and Asna rivers overflow. The Vishnupuri dam released a large amount of water, exacerbating the situation.
Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah met Prime Minister Narendra Modi and insisted on demands pertaining to the state, including on Fair Recovery Price of sugarcane, All India Institute of Medical Sciences for Raichur, the release of flood relief among others.
The death toll in the collapse of a bridge over the Mahisagar river in Gujarat's Vadodara district has risen to 15. Rescue operations are ongoing to find the missing.
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.
The Ganga water at the Triveni Sangam in Prayagraj, where lakhs of people are taking a holy dip every day during the ongoing Maha Kumbh, is currently unsafe for bathing as it exceeds the prescribed limit for biological oxygen demand (BOD), a key parameter to determine water quality, according to government data.
Army spokesman Lt Gen Ahmad Sharif Chaudhry in a media interaction said at least 26 people were killed and 46 injured in the missile strikes on cities in Punjab and PoK. "The six locations that India attacked last night... Pakistan lost 26 people and 46 were injured," he said.
The KMSS and the All Assam Students Union are opposing the NHPC's dam project at the lower Subansiri site and are blocking the movement of men and materials related to the project at Gerukamukh on the Assam-Arunachal Pradesh border.
Terming the Kerala government's apprehension over safety of the Mullaperiyar dam as "unnecessary", Home Minister P Chidambaram on Saturday claimed it was borne out of "bypoll fear".
'We humans may not have not created natural disasters, but we have definitely amplified their impact.'
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.
Amid the excitement over the arrival of Cheetahs in the Kuno National Park, villagers in the surrounding areas of Madhya Pradesh's Sheopur district have a variety of concerns including the fear of land acquisition and the fear of the big cat itself.
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.
The temporary water body was formed after sediments that the catastrophic flash flood earlier this month brought down, blocking the mouth of a stream that joins the Rishiganga river.
Four National Disaster Response Force teams are engaged in rescue work, he added. The village has around 50 houses, of which 17 were buried under the landslide, the official said.
'The entire public needs to be evacuated immediately. Any day, the entire town can collapse.'
More than 53,500 people were now staying in various relief camps across the state.
As the storage level touched 3,000 million cubic feet in the Chembarambakkam reservoir as against its full capacity of 3,645 Mcft, authorities on Wednesday began releasing about 1,000 cusecs into the Adyar river as a precautionary measure.
'We will win all the 28 Lok Sabha seats in 2024.'
'The government had six months to prepare for the contingency. When the government is forewarned, it needs to take a decision on contingency measures, evict villagers, provide them with alternate temporary shelter, accommodation, provide food, water, cattle stocks. But none of this is ever done,' says N Suresh.
The Centre on Sunday assured all help and assistance to Bihar for rescue and relief in the wake of emerging situation due to overflow in Kosi following a landslide in Nepal creating an artificial dam on the river and triggering possibility of floods.
'This is probably why the late General Bipin Rawat, who hails from the Garhwal Himalaya, said that the existing roads are fine with the army.'
'Because of the melting of ice as well as irresponsible human behaviour such as throwing soil and plastic into the sea, there has been a rise in temperature.' 'I fear there will be direct and dangerous consequences for us.'
Hundreds of people have been evacuated to safer places in eastern Rajasthan after heavy rainfall over the past two days led to a flood-like situation in the region and severed road connectivity to many areas.
Amnesty highlighted poll-related violence in the lead up to the May 2014 General Elections, communal clashes and failure of consultation on corporate projects as key concerns.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke to Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal over phone and discussed about the prevailing condition on Monday.
Parched Maharashtra village looks to 'water wives' for relief
India will require new technical solutions and approaches to solve environmental problems.
Repromulgation is a perennial malaise; and judges must clarify -- indeed, revisit -- the rules that govern this practice, argues Shubhankar Dam.
'The interesting point about the choice of the area for the surgical strikes is that it is the most sensitive part of the Line of Control,' says Colonel Anil A Athale (retd).
In Tamil Nadu, Divya Nair encounters jallikattu, a ban on colas and a water shortage.
'So far the youth were Modi's strength.' 'It now seems under pressure, and for good reason: Crisis in education, jobs, slowdown in manufacturing, and thereby trading,' points out Shekhar Gupta.
