By Sujit Bhar
That the glaciers across India’s Himalayas are receding and the snow cover is being degraded at an alarming rate is not news. It has been pointed out to the public through several responsible agencies in India and from around the world. Any casual visit to any mountainous area would showcase the issue. What is news today, however, is the fact that the Ministry of Jal Shakti, or the ministry that takes care of the water resources of the country, has virtually accepted before the court that this is true. The crisis is real and getting worse by the day.
The Ministry has virtually accepted this as true in an affidavit filed with its reply before the National Green Tribunal (NGT). The ministry enclosed a project report on snow and glacier changes and their impacts on melt runoff in Himalayan basins prepared by the National Institute of Hydrology (NIH).
The NIH report is very critical because it highlights how climate change has driven significant movements that include a decline in snow cover and snowmelt run-off. The report also shows an increase in rainfall and glacial melt contributing to total runoff. On the face of it, this probably shows just a transition in the type of water that our rivers carry now, compared to earlier decades. However, this is an important transition, which showcases a slow-but-steady move from snow-driven to rain and glacier-driven runoff, and says that this will become predominant after 2050. We are losing the snow caps and that is not good for the environment as a whole.
What does this report stress upon? It emphasizes the urgent need for climate mitigation to prevent severe reductions in snow cover and to manage the increasing variability in water resources. Hence it is not just the quantity of water, but the quality that matters. This is because the future of any environment depends heavily on the water resource and the sustainability of such resources.
At the same time, the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF&CC) also filed a reply affidavit disclosing the actions being taken or proposed to mitigate the impact of climate change.
To this effect, the MoEF&CC has prepared the National Mission for Green India (GIM) and the National Action Plan on Climate Change (NAPCC).
All these affidavits were placed before the NGT’s Principal Bench of Justice Prakash Shrivastava, Chairperson, Justice Arun Kumar Tyagi, Judicial Member, and Dr A Senthil Vel, Expert Member. The NGT has listed the matter for hearing on March 11, 2025. This long date is because the ministries have requested time to present before the court a proper action taken report.
The NGT had taken suo motu cognizance of a news item dated March 21, 2024, related to the alarming impact of climate change on South Asia’s major river basins, including the Ganges, Indus, and Brahmaputra.
Meanwhile, evidence of the degradation had come earlier from other reports as well. The Central Water Commission (CWC) in a report has highlighted the issue of expanding Himalayan glacial lakes. According to that report, the expansion of Himalayan glacial lakes is happening, and this is happening due to climate change. It poses risk to community and biodiversity because of increased chances of Glacial Lake Outburst Floods (GLOFs).
The following are the key findings of the report. It says that the Himalayan region witnessed a 10.8 percent increase in surface area of glacial lakes from 2011 to 2024. In India, with a 34 percent expansion in surface area, glacial lakes have experienced an even more substantial rise.
The report has talked about high risk lakes. It says 67 lakes in India have witnessed an over 40 percent increase in surface area, placing them under high-risk category for potential GLOFs. Then there are trans-boundary risks, which means that the expanding glacial lakes in Bhutan, Nepal and China.
Glacial lakes are water bodies originating from a glacier, formed when a glacier erodes land and then melts, filling the depression created by it. And a GLOF is the sudden release of water retained in a glacial lake that can be located in front, at side, underneath, within, or on top of a glacier, causing large amounts of water to flow into nearby rivers.
Such an incident had happened in Sikkim in October 2023, triggered by the bursting of the South Lhonak Lake.
The Hindu Kush Himalaya mountain range spans eight countries and stretches 3,500 km across Asia. It is vital for the food, water and power security of up to two billion people and is a habitat for countless irreplaceable species. It is also acutely fragile—and absolutely frontline to the impacts of the triple planetary crisis.
The International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development, a regional intergovernmental organization established in 1983, is working to make this critical region greener, more inclusive and climate resilient.
According to the India Science and Tech portal, ISRO is keeping a close eye on Indian glaciers. In view of the importance of snow-fields and glaciers for water security of the nation and assessing climatic impact on the Indian sub-continent, the extent of snow and glaciers need to be regularly mapped and monitored. Therefore, it is important to make an inventory, monitor and assess the state of snow and glaciers and to know the sustainability of glaciers in view of changing climate and to ensure water security of the nation using space-based observations. That is being done by Indian Space Research Organisation. Currently there are 14 operational Indian remote sensing satellites in orbit. Images obtained from these satellites are being used for making an inventory and monitoring of Himalayan glaciers and also to carry out mass balance studies.
Compared to polar or Alpine glaciers, there is very little data on Himalayan glaciers as most are located at altitudes beyond 3,700 to 4,300 metres and are virtually inaccessible. But studying glaciers is critical not just in terms of the environment, but for the potential disastrous consequences for people living downstream.
That is why the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Government of India, has identified “Snow and glacier studies of the Himalayan region” as one of the major thrust areas. Snow and glaciers of Himalayan region are difficult to study using conventional field-based methods due to rugged topography, high altitude and extreme weather conditions. However, space-based monitoring of these resources has been found to be an extremely viable and useful alternative.
The post appeared first on .
That the glaciers across India’s Himalayas are receding and the snow cover is being degraded at an alarming rate is not news. It has been pointed out to the public through several responsible agencies in India and from around the world. Any casual visit to any mountainous area would showcase the issue. What is news today, however, is the fact that the Ministry of Jal Shakti, or the ministry that takes care of the water resources of the country, has virtually accepted before the court that this is true. The crisis is real and getting worse by the day.
The Ministry has virtually accepted this as true in an affidavit filed with its reply before the National Green Tribunal (NGT). The ministry enclosed a project report on snow and glacier changes and their impacts on melt runoff in Himalayan basins prepared by the National Institute of Hydrology (NIH).
The NIH report is very critical because it highlights how climate change has driven significant movements that include a decline in snow cover and snowmelt run-off. The report also shows an increase in rainfall and glacial melt contributing to total runoff. On the face of it, this probably shows just a transition in the type of water that our rivers carry now, compared to earlier decades. However, this is an important transition, which showcases a slow-but-steady move from snow-driven to rain and glacier-driven runoff, and says that this will become predominant after 2050. We are losing the snow caps and that is not good for the environment as a whole.
What does this report stress upon? It emphasizes the urgent need for climate mitigation to prevent severe reductions in snow cover and to manage the increasing variability in water resources. Hence it is not just the quantity of water, but the quality that matters. This is because the future of any environment depends heavily on the water resource and the sustainability of such resources.
At the same time, the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF&CC) also filed a reply affidavit disclosing the actions being taken or proposed to mitigate the impact of climate change.
To this effect, the MoEF&CC has prepared the National Mission for Green India (GIM) and the National Action Plan on Climate Change (NAPCC).
All these affidavits were placed before the NGT’s Principal Bench of Justice Prakash Shrivastava, Chairperson, Justice Arun Kumar Tyagi, Judicial Member, and Dr A Senthil Vel, Expert Member. The NGT has listed the matter for hearing on March 11, 2025. This long date is because the ministries have requested time to present before the court a proper action taken report.
The NGT had taken suo motu cognizance of a news item dated March 21, 2024, related to the alarming impact of climate change on South Asia’s major river basins, including the Ganges, Indus, and Brahmaputra.
Meanwhile, evidence of the degradation had come earlier from other reports as well. The Central Water Commission (CWC) in a report has highlighted the issue of expanding Himalayan glacial lakes. According to that report, the expansion of Himalayan glacial lakes is happening, and this is happening due to climate change. It poses risk to community and biodiversity because of increased chances of Glacial Lake Outburst Floods (GLOFs).
The following are the key findings of the report. It says that the Himalayan region witnessed a 10.8 percent increase in surface area of glacial lakes from 2011 to 2024. In India, with a 34 percent expansion in surface area, glacial lakes have experienced an even more substantial rise.
The report has talked about high risk lakes. It says 67 lakes in India have witnessed an over 40 percent increase in surface area, placing them under high-risk category for potential GLOFs. Then there are trans-boundary risks, which means that the expanding glacial lakes in Bhutan, Nepal and China.
Glacial lakes are water bodies originating from a glacier, formed when a glacier erodes land and then melts, filling the depression created by it. And a GLOF is the sudden release of water retained in a glacial lake that can be located in front, at side, underneath, within, or on top of a glacier, causing large amounts of water to flow into nearby rivers.
Such an incident had happened in Sikkim in October 2023, triggered by the bursting of the South Lhonak Lake.
The Hindu Kush Himalaya mountain range spans eight countries and stretches 3,500 km across Asia. It is vital for the food, water and power security of up to two billion people and is a habitat for countless irreplaceable species. It is also acutely fragile—and absolutely frontline to the impacts of the triple planetary crisis.
The International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development, a regional intergovernmental organization established in 1983, is working to make this critical region greener, more inclusive and climate resilient.
According to the India Science and Tech portal, ISRO is keeping a close eye on Indian glaciers. In view of the importance of snow-fields and glaciers for water security of the nation and assessing climatic impact on the Indian sub-continent, the extent of snow and glaciers need to be regularly mapped and monitored. Therefore, it is important to make an inventory, monitor and assess the state of snow and glaciers and to know the sustainability of glaciers in view of changing climate and to ensure water security of the nation using space-based observations. That is being done by Indian Space Research Organisation. Currently there are 14 operational Indian remote sensing satellites in orbit. Images obtained from these satellites are being used for making an inventory and monitoring of Himalayan glaciers and also to carry out mass balance studies.
Compared to polar or Alpine glaciers, there is very little data on Himalayan glaciers as most are located at altitudes beyond 3,700 to 4,300 metres and are virtually inaccessible. But studying glaciers is critical not just in terms of the environment, but for the potential disastrous consequences for people living downstream.
That is why the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, Government of India, has identified “Snow and glacier studies of the Himalayan region” as one of the major thrust areas. Snow and glaciers of Himalayan region are difficult to study using conventional field-based methods due to rugged topography, high altitude and extreme weather conditions. However, space-based monitoring of these resources has been found to be an extremely viable and useful alternative.
The post appeared first on .