Authorities in West Bengal and Assam have issued flash flood alerts for several districts along major rivers and evacuated persons in vulnerable areas downstream, following a glacial lake outburst in Bhutan. The Union water resources department has stated that the flood water is likely to impact districts in West Bengal and Assam.
A glacial lake outburst occurred on Thursday in Bhutan, prompting authorities in West Bengal and Assam to issue flash flood alerts for districts along major rivers and evacuate persons in vulnerable areas downstream. According to Reuters, Cooch Behar, Tufanganj, and Busirhat districts in West Bengal along the Sankosh river and its tributaries were on high alert. In Assam, settlements along the Brahmaputra river were also asked to remain alert, The Indian Express reported.
The Union water resources department stated that the flood water would flow downstream and reach the Bhutan-India border in six to eight hours, and is likely to impact districts in West Bengal and Assam. The glacial lake outburst occurred in the Sintaphu lake near Wakila mountain in Bhutan.
Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said that the state was monitoring the impact of the glacial lake outburst in vulnerable areas of Dhubri and Kokrajhar districts. The state’s teams were coordinating with the National Disaster Response Force and other agencies, Sarma said on social media. West Bengal Water Resources Minister Nisith Pramanik urged persons living near tea gardens in the northern part of the state and riverbeds to evacuate immediately.
In Sikkim alone, there are almost 700 such lakes, of which 21 have been identified as ‘potentially dangerous with a high outburst probability’. The number of glacial lakes in Himachal Pradesh has increased by over 500% since 1990. In August, nearly 1,500 persons were killed, over 9,200 injured and 5,000 missing in Nepal after a flash flood triggered by a glacial lake outburst on the country’s border with China.
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