Another glacier burst at Uttarakhand’s Joshimath puts authorities on alert

Uttarakhand on February 7 witnessed loss of lives, disappearances and devastation of property due to a glacial burst at Joshimath in Uttarakhand’s Chamoli district which triggered floods that destroyed two hydropower projects near the Naina Devi National Park.

A glacier burst in Sumna in Niti Valley near Uttarkhand’s Joshimath on Saturday near the India-China border has put the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) on alert. Uttarakhand earlier in February witnessed loss of lives and devastation due to a glacier burst in the same region which led to floods in Chamoli.

In this file photo from February, NDRF personnel are seen carrying out rescue and restoration work at damaged Tapovan barrage, weeks after the glacier burst at Joshimath which triggered a massive flash flood on Feb. 7, in Chamoli district of Uttarakhand. (PTI Photo)

“A glacier burst in Uttarakhand's Joshimath near the India-China border,” Colonel Manish Kapil, a commander of the Border Road Task Force. Uttarakhand chief minister said Union home minister Amit Shah has taken note of the incident and assured his support to the Uttarakhand government and advised the ITBP to remain alert.

“Home minister Amit Shah took immediate cognisance of the glacier burst in Niti Valley’s Sumna. He assured he will help us while instructing the ITBP to remain vigilant,” Uttarakhand chief minister Tirath Singh Rawat was quoted as saying by news agency ANI.

Uttarakhand on February 7 witnessed loss of lives, disappearances and devastation of property due to a glacial burst at Joshimath in Uttarakhand’s Chamoli district which triggered floods that destroyed two hydropower projects near the Naina Devi National Park. The incident claimed 74 lives and more than 100 people have disappeared. Several workers who were trapped in a tunnel near the Tapovan-Vishnugad hydel project were rescued but many workers died whose bodies were found days later. Experts have suggested that the construction of hydel power projects could have led to the disaster in February. Stone quarrying, blasting of mountains and digging of tunnels in the base of a mountain system could have led to this disaster, according to a report by HT. The 135 missing persons in the Chamoli disaster were declared dead by the Uttarakhand health department in February. Following the disaster, joint study teams have been formed to study the glaciers in the region.