Environmental Crisis In Himalayan States

The Extent of Environmental Crisis in Himalayas

According to a study of International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development, 70-80% of original habitat of the Hindukush region has been lost, which may increase to 80-87% by 2100. It is estimated that a quarter of endemic species in the Indian Himalaya states could be wiped out by 2100.

• The Himalayas are one of the loftiest and most populated mountain ranges of the world. Himalayas began to form between 40 and 50 million years ago when the two large landmasses of India and Eurasia collided with each other. In India, the Himalayan region comprises of about 12% of country’s landmass and is home to about 30.16% the country’s fauna. Of the 372 mammalian species recorded in the country so far, as many as 241 species are found in the Himalayas.
• The Indian Himalayan Region is spread across 13 Indian States and Union Territories of namely Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim, Tripura, Assam and West Bengal. Despite their apparent remoteness, the Himalayan region has not been spared from human induced stresses and related environmental crises.

Recent Disasters in Uttarakhand

• Massive floods occurred in February 2021 in the Chamoli District of Uttarakhand. It was followed by an avalanche near the Rishiganga Power Project. The flood was triggered by a glacial lake outburst in Nanda Devi mountain.
• The debris flow from Rishiganga Project damaged other units downstream and endangered the lives of the people. Tapovan, Pipal Koti Vishnuprayag projects were also damaged.
• In October 2021, incessant rains and landslide led to massive destruction of property, especially in the hills of Kumaon.

Recent Disasters in Himachal Pradesh

• In July 2021, At least nine tourists were crushed under massive boulders that slid down a hill following a landslide near Batsari in the Kinnaur. A bridge over Baspa River was damaged in the rockslide, as were several vehicles.
• In August 2021, Kinnaur in Himachal Pradesh suffered a massive landslide killing many people.
• In September 2021, a huge landslip at Jeori in Himachal Pradesh's Shimla district blocked National Highway 5 (Shimla-Kinnaur).

Factors Causing Increase in Himalayan Disasters

• Global Warming and Climate Change: Earth’s average surface temperature has risen about 1 degrees Celsius since the late 19th century, primarily due to increase in emissions of Carbon Dioxide. Increase in temperature has resulted in glacial retreat in the Himalayas and formation of Glacial Lake. Such lakes are inherently unstable and leads to destructive glacier floods causing damages to life and property. Glacial retreat also causes changes in the ecology in downstream flow of river which adversely impacts native and other keystone species.
• Population Explosion: Since Independence the population in Himalayan States has grown by nearly 250%. Steep slope and rough terrain conditions leads to limited availability of land and water for agriculture and other economic activities. With increasing population the pressure on limited resources is very high and any disturbance in the fragile ecology causes flash floods, landslides, etc. Generally human settlements located along riverine ecosystems face threats of flash floods.
• Degradation of Forests: Rise in urbanization and industrialization has led to overexploitation and degradation of forest resources and loss of biodiversity. Forest communities are also dependent upon fuelwood obtained from felling of trees growing in the forests and agricultural fields. Unscientific exploitation of forests has further exacerbated the decline in biodiversity of forests. Loss of biodiversity leads to increase in soil erosion, degradation and desertification. Due to soil erosion and loosening of surface soil, the possibilities of landslip and landslide increases.
• Development Projects: Development projects such as Hydropower projects, roads, mining, etc. tend to destroy the environment and displace indigenous people who are crusaders of conservation. The construction activities at large scale has devastating impacts on the mountains because of blasting to build tunnels and barrages. Extensive and rapid landuse changes due to developmental activities have led to increase in climatic hazards such as landslides, floods and forest fires.
• Tourism: Unsustainable tourism practices contribute to the increase in Himalayan disasters. Replacement of traditional eco-friendly and aesthetic architecture with inappropriate and dangerous construction, poorly designed roads and associated infrastructure and inadequate solid waste management results in irreparable loss to the ecology. Air pollution, degradation of watershed regions and water sources has also put immense pressure on the fragile environment.
• Poor Governance: There is lack of decentralized governance in Himalayan states. Over centralization and one size fits all approach leads to failures in identification of the needs of the Himalayan states and aspirations of the people. Also there is a significant gap in the knowledge base with respect to the socio-economic characteristics, traditional- institutional and ecological processes operating in mountain areas.

Himalayas are often regarded as cradle of South Asian civilizations. For protecting and preserving the Himalayan ecology to mitigate the risks associated with Himalayan disasters, there is a need to interlink the social and economic aspects of Himalayas with the physical dynamics of the mountain system. More powers should be given to the decentralized institutions. It is important to have early warning and better weather forecast systems, and promote eco-tourism and sustainable development.