CNN Central News & Network-ITDC India Epress/ITDC News Bhopal: Monitoring arrangements are being strengthened in view of the potential threat of glacial lake outburst floods (GLOF) from glacial lakes in Uttarakhand’s high Himalayan regions. The effort to establish a real-time monitoring and early warning system for glacial lakes in the state has begun with Vasundhara Tal in Chamoli district.
According to 2023 data from the National Remote Sensing Centre, a total of 344 glacial lakes have been identified in Uttarakhand. Of these, 13 lakes have been placed in the high-risk category. The 13 lakes include six in Pithoragarh, four in Chamoli, and one each in Bageshwar, Tehri and Uttarkashi. Vasundhara Tal is also among these high-risk lakes.
The system being installed at Vasundhara Tal will include water-level sensors, an automatic weather station, snow-depth sensors, temperature sensors, tilt and vibration sensors, and water-flow sensors. Satellite communication will also be used to transmit data from the remote area. This will enable monitoring of unusual changes in the lake’s water level, weather, snow and water flow.
In a GLOF event, a large volume of water can suddenly be released from a glacial lake, creating the risk of flash flooding in downstream areas. The new system aims to identify possible changes in advance and send timely information to the departments concerned. The initiative could also become a basis for developing similar monitoring systems at other vulnerable glacial lakes in the future.
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