Sikkim forms commission to address glacial threats

Tuesday, Oct 22, 2024 00:15 [IST]

Last Update: Monday, Oct 21, 2024 18:42 [IST]

Sikkim forms commission to address glacial threats

BIJOY GURUNG

Commission tasked to review status of high-risk glacial lakes, suggest measures to minimize glacial threats to Sikkim

GANGTOK,: The State government has constituted a 13-member commission to evaluate vulnerable glacial lakes in Sikkim and suggest strategies to mitigate future glacial hazards.

The ‘Sikkim Commission on Glacial Hazards’ is headed by Dr. Akhilesh Gupta, former senior advisor of Department of Science & Technology, Government of India as its chairman.

Notified this September, the commission is tasked to address and mitigate future glacial threats to Sikkim, a State which suffered extensive damages to properties and loss of lives during the massive Glacial Lake Outburst Flood in October 2023.

“The accelerated rate of melting glaciers influenced by climate change has resulted in the formation of a large number of glacial lakes and many that are in the process of being formed. This has created an immense threat of glacial hazards in the State,” reads the government notification for constituting the Sikkim Commission on Glacial Hazards.

Sikkim has 40 high-risk glacial lakes including 16 in category ‘A’ of high-vulnerability index. Thirteen of such glacial lakes are in North Sikkim and three are in West Sikkim.

Alarmingly, one in every four high-risk glacial lakes in India is situated within Sikkim.

Commission given set tasks

The commission is mandated to review the current status of glacier and glacier lakes in Sikkim, to establish the link of climate change and global warming to glacier melt in Sikkim. It would identify the vulnerable glacial lakes in Sikkim in terms of glacial impact.

Crucially, the commission is tasked to suggest the site-specific best technical measures to minimize the glacial threat in the identified glacial lakes. It would be suggesting special measures to follow during the mitigation measures, especially during the engineering interventions at the lake and in the downstream areas.

The commission would also suggest the roles and responsibilities of the different stakeholders in terms of glacial hazards, and if required, suggest forming a specific task force to take up mitigation measures at the field level.

Another important responsibility is to provide policy prescriptions on a cross-sectoral basis and inter-disciplinary issues to the Sikkim government. These are essential to enhance the efficacy of operationalization of both the technical and scientific recommendation and also to assess and mobilize the institutional or resources support.

The commission would also be suggesting the State government to tap national and international climate fund towards glacial threat mitigation measures as well as other climate hazards in Sikkim. It is also directed to suggest action required on human resources generation or capacity building towards the study and management of glacial threats.

The commission has been directed to submit its report within one year of its first meeting or latest by February 2025.

Team Sikkim Commission on Glacial Hazards

Dr. Akhilesh Gupta, former senior advisor of Department of Science & Technology, Government of India is the commission’s chairman.

In a social media post, Dr. Gupta expressed that he is honoured to be designated as the chairman of Sikkim Commission on Glacial Hazards along with some of India's leading glaciologists, hydrologists, DRR experts, Disaster Managers and officials from Government of Sikkim as members.

“The Commission has a daunting task of assessing vulnerable glacial lakes in Sikkim and propose appropriate mitigation strategies to reduce the impact of such hazards in future. The Commission looks forward to working with all stakeholders within and outside Sikkim to seek a long term solution to the problem. As the impact of climate change increases in future the frequency, intensity and duration of such disasters may increase,” said Dr. Gupta.

Leading educationists and experts like Prof Mahendra P Lama, Prof A. Ramsoo, Dr. Rajesh Kumar, Dr. Piyush Gourav, Dr. Ashim Sattar, Dr. Kalachand Sain, and Dr. Anil Kumar Gupta are in the commission as members.

The commission also includes heads of Forest & Environment, Land Revenue & Disaster Management, Mines & Geology, and Water Resources departments as the members.

State Science & Technology secretary Sandeep Tambe is the member secretary.

Sikkim at a Glance

  • Area: 7096 Sq Kms
  • Capital: Gangtok
  • Altitude: 5,840 ft
  • Population: 6.10 Lakhs
  • Topography: Hilly terrain elevation from 600 to over 28,509 ft above sea level
  • Climate:
  • Summer: Min- 13°C - Max 21°C
  • Winter: Min- 0.48°C - Max 13°C
  • Rainfall: 325 cms per annum
  • Language Spoken: Nepali, Bhutia, Lepcha, Tibetan, English, Hindi