The lessons to be drawn from Chamoli disaster

Scientists have debated the exact cause of the flash floods that devastated Chamoli district of Uttarakhand on February 7. But there is little doubt that such disasters are likely to become more frequent.

This could be because of long-term effects — such as the climate crisis — of human activity as well as more recent developments, such as the construction of dams to generate electricity in the fragile mountain terrain.

The effects of the climate crisis on Uttarakhand’s weather patterns and their impact on the environment’s capacity to sustain damage being done by the construction of dams makes the state particularly vulnerable.

These factors definitely pose a threat to Chamoli, according to data on its weather analysed by HT. Here’s how: