Uttarakhand’s Glacier Burst Cause Dangerous Floods
Uttarakhand witnessed a major natural disaster when a glacier burst in the Chamoli district and triggered a massive avalanche.
A huge catastrophe has once again shaken Uttarakhand. Yesterday 7th February, at 10.00am a huge chunk of a glacier on the Nanda Devi mountain broke and fell onto theDhauliganga river which is near the Reni village in Uttarakhand's Chamoli district. When the glacier broke and fell into the river, it led to huge waves of water and mud to flow down to the village. Homes were swept away as the waters rushed down the mountain sides in a raging torrent. Many villages were evacuated and people taken to safer areas.The Rishinganga Hydroelectric Project has been completely washed away. The Vishnugad power project has been partially damaged. At Least 170 people are missing. Most of these are labourers who were working in the hydropower project. Bodies of 7 men were recovered, but it is not sure how many have died yet. Many labourers are stuck inside tunnels.
Addressing a press conference in the evening, Uttarakhand Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat said the number of missing persons might increase. Rawat also announced Rs 4 lakh financial assistance each for the families of those killed. Narendra Modi who was constantly monitoring the situation approved an ex-gratia of Rs 2 lakh each from Prime Minister's National Relief Fund for the families of those who lost their lives. Modi also approved an amount of Rs 50,000 for those who have been seriously injured. The CM inspected the damage via helicopter and also visited the affected area to take stock of the situation and spoke to the officials of the state disaster management and Chamoli administration. The army has been called for rescue operations. High alert was sounded in all districts and people were warned not to venture near the Ganga river. Rawat also appealed to people to not spread rumours through old flood videos. Reports suggest that the Nandadevi glacier chunk broke off due to less snowfall in 2020–21 winter season. Experts are also suggesting climate change is one of the primary reasons for this catastrophe.
