Interview: Wide roads, tree cutting are destroying slopes in Himalayan states, leading to disasters

This year, the onset of the monsoon in India was under unusual circumstances. The country saw its highest ever rainfall in May. The official onset of monsoon was declared over the hill states of Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand around June 20 and monsoon covered the entire country by June 29.

Right from the start, rains wreaked havoc in Himachal Pradesh. By July 17, the state had recorded more than 100 deaths and losses worth more than Rs 800 crore due to heavy rainfall and landslides. Many districts, including Mandi, Kullu and Shimla, were affected.

On August 5, a disaster in Uttarakhand’s Uttarkashi area led to widespread destruction. A first landslide or mudslide occurred in Dharali village, followed by another in Harsil, about 6 km away.

Videos showed many structures along a riverbed being washed away by a river of debris that came crashing down a hill in Dharali and a similar flood in an army camp in Harsil. While initial reports claimed the cause to be a cloudburst, experts have pointed out that the reason could be a glacier breach or avalanche as well.

India is among the countries most vulnerable to climate change which makes our annual monsoon more erratic. Climate change is expected to increase the frequency of extreme weather events like heavy rainfall and...

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