India witnessing severe climate impact on Himalayan region: Bhupender Yadav
Nepal Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli launched Nepal’s nationally determined contribution 3.0 for 2035 period on Friday
Union environment minister Bhupender Yadav on Friday said that the country is witnessing severe climate change impact due to which glaciers are retreating threatening the future of water security for populations downstream.
“The science is clear. Himalayas are sounding alarm. As a consequence of global warming due to human activity, glaciers are retreating, threatening the future of water security for populations downstream,” said Yadav in his address at the Sagarmatha Sambaad, a multi-stakeholder meeting on mountains and climate change being hosted by Nepal while adding that the livelihoods of mountain communities are threatened despite contributing the least to the climate crisis.
“The Himalayas bear a significant part of the burden of the environmental crisis. We in India, with our significant Himalayan territory, witness these impacts first-hand. We share the concerns of the mountain States and their peoples. Our environmental futures are intrinsically linked,” he said.
Yadav said the future of mountain communities will be dependent on collective action of all nations in mitigating greenhouse gas emissions in keeping with the principles of equity and common but differentiated responsibilities and respective capabilities.
“South Asia has been responsible for only 4% of global cumulative carbon dioxide emissions until 2020, despite being home to almost 25% of the global population,” Yadav said while flagging that the global carbon budget is rapidly being exhausted with the developed nations continuing to disproportionately grab the meagre remaining carbon budget.
“Their commitments to providing climate finance, technology transfer and capacity building have been profoundly neglected, intensifying the climate crisis for which they bear far greater responsibility,” Yadav emphasised.
Yadav said India is committed to contributing to climate action with the urgency it demands, despite our minimal role for the crisis it faces.
“Our Nationally Determined Contribution under the Paris Agreement, and our National Action Plan on Climate Change, are a testament to our resolve. So are the ambitious targets for renewable energy – aiming for 500 Gigawatts of non-fossil fuel based installed electricity generation capacity by 2030 – our leadership in the International Solar Alliance and the Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure, and our long-term goal of reaching net zero by 2070, are all testaments to our resolve,” he said.
As part of the plan for the Himalayan region, under the “ek ped ma ke naam” campaign, 1.42 billion saplings have been planted, including 72.1 million trees in the Indian Himalayan Region.
India is also implementing a dedicated National Mission focused on sustaining the Himalayan ecosystem, promoting climate-resilient agriculture, and enhancing disaster preparedness. “We understand that solutions for mountain regions must be context-specific, integrating indigenous knowledge with cutting-edge science and technology,” he said.
Further, India is also developing its first National Adaptation Plan (NAP), which aims to develop a roadmap that aligns with sustainable development goals and ensures climate resilience for all sectors and regions including the Himalayan region, he said.
India conducted the first Snow Leopard Population Assessment between 2019 and 2023, indicated a total of 718 snow leopards across India, accounting for approximately 10–15% of the global population.
Based on present challenges facing the Himalayan region, Yadav called for enhanced scientific cooperation including strengthening research collaboration, and monitoring cryosphere changes, hydrological cycles, and biodiversity; building climate resilience: Investing in climate adaptation measures, early warning systems for disasters like Glacial Lake Outburst Floods (GLOFs), and climate-resilient infrastructure in mountain areas; empowering mountain communities: Ensuring that the welfare, needs and aspirations of local communities are at the heart of policy-making and their benefit from green livelihoods and sustainable tourism, among others.
HT reported on May 13 that glaciologists and local communities mourned the loss of Nepal’s Yala glacier, believed to be the first Nepalese glacier to be declared “dead”.
HT reported on April 21 that snow persistence in the Ganga basin this year has been 24.1% below normal — the lowest in the past 23 years, vis-a-vis 30.2% above normal (the highest) in 2015 — which could lead to reduced flows in early summer, as per ICIMOD.
Snow persistence over the Hindu Kush Himalayan (HKH) region has plummeted to a 23-year record low, registering a staggering 23.6% fall from the long-term average. This unprecedented level of reduced snow cover, which measures the fraction of time snow remains on the ground after snowfall, underscores a significant and growing threat to water security of nearly 2 billion people who are dependent on the HKH’s river systems, ICIMOD said, adding that the alarming statistic is compounded by the fact that 2025 marks the third consecutive year of below-normal seasonal snow across the region.
On March 21, the World Meteorological Organisation said the period between 2022 and 2024 witnessed the largest three-year loss of glacier mass on record.
Nepal Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli on Friday launched Nepal’s nationally determined contribution 3.0 for 2035 period.
