Team Constituted To Study Two Glacial Lakes In Pithoragarh

Dehradun: The Uttarakhand government has constituted a team of experts to study two of the four highly sensitive glacial lakes in Pithoragarh district. This team will leave on September 20 for the exercise.

There are about 1,200 glacial lakes among the 968 glaciers present in the high Himalayan regions of Uttarakhand, out of which five are categorized as highly sensitive. The Uttarakhand State Disaster Management Authority (USDMA) has already conducted a study of the Vasudhara glacial lake in Chamoli district.

In 2024, the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) released a report on the glacial lakes across the country that stated that of almost 1200 glacial lakes in Uttarakhand, 13 were in the category of sensitive and highly sensitive.

The NDMA had called for their monitoring at regular intervals. This had led to the decision to monitor the five highly sensitive ones.

The USDMA had decided to send the team of experts to the two glacial lakes in Pithoragarh in September or October after the reduction in precipitation and the amount of water being high after the monsoon.

Secretary for Disaster Management and Rehabilitation, Vinod Kumar Suman, said that preparations have been completed for the study of the two highly sensitive glacial lakes.

“The team includes experts from various institutions, including Uttarakhand State Disaster Management Authority (USDMA), Geographic Information System (GIS) and Indo Tibetan Border Police (ITBP). This team will go to ground zero and do bathymetry of the lakes,” he said.

Bathymetry is the study and mapping of the underwater terrain of water bodies like oceans, lakes, and rivers, essentially the underwater version of topography. It uses technologies like sonar and multibeam echo sounders to measure the depth of and create detailed maps that use isobaths (depth contour lines) to show underwater features and support navigation and exploration.

After the study of the Vasudhara glacial lake in 2024, the team of experts had suggested installing sensors around this lake. But the process of installing sensors has not started yet.

Suman said that the specification for installing the sensors has been prepared, and high-tech sensors are to be installed in this area. The adverse conditions in that area have prevented their installation, but they will be installed soon.

Among the Himalayan states, Uttarakhand has a large number of glacial lakes whose presence raises concerns around Glacial Lake Outburst Floods (GLOFs) that can cause catastrophic damage. The NDMA has identified 13 vulnerable glacial lakes and classified them by risk level. The scientists use satellite data to monitor their growth, especially moraine-dammed lakes, to assess their risk of sudden rupture and flooding.

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