Disaster zone

With an extreme weather event on almost every day this year, the Himalayas show the cost of ignoring science and warnings

- RAJU SAJWAN

ON AUGUST 22, as the magazine went to press, Chamoli in Uttarakhand joined the growing list of Himalayan regions battered by extreme weather this monsoon. It was, in fact, the fourth major disaster in just over a month, after Mandi in Himachal Pradesh, Dharali in Uttarakhand and Kishtwar in Jammu and Kashmir. These are not just episodes of heavy rain. They show how altered rainfall, geology and rampant construction are turning landslides and floods into killers.

In 2021, the Himalayas have been in crisis almost every single day. Between January and August 18, the 13 Himalayan states and Union Territories recorded at least one disaster daily, killing 632 people, according to government data analysed by Down To Earth (DTE). The pattern is only getting worse. In 2018, disasters struck on 53 per cent of the days in the entire year, with 1,058 deaths. In 2019, the numbers rose to 58 per cent and 837 deaths. In 2020, they climbed to 60 per cent, killing 870 people.

This year, not only did the Southwest Monsoon arrive a week early, it was punctuated by an unusually high number of western disturbances, extra-tropical storms that normally affect India in winter and spring. Between June 1 and August 20, India recorded 14 western disturbances, according to India Meteorological Department (IMD) data analysed by DTE. Five occurred in June, five in July and four in August (up to August 20). At least four were strong and persistent, lasting five to seven days. India typically sees four to six western disturbances between December and March and their summer frequency is usually low because the subtropical westerly jet shifts north.