Sir.
The editorial “Himalayan glaciers” DE Mar 20 has rightly mentioned that these glaciers are life line for the vast humanity of this part of the globe. These glaciers feed rivers like the Indus, the Brahmaputra, the Ganga, the Yumuna which provide water to millions of people for drinking and irrigation purposes and industrial uses. However, these glaciers aptly known as water towers of Asia and shrinking due to global warming. Global warming is set to render a terrible mark on the giant Himalayan glaciers by way of their melting and posing threat to lives of lakhs of native people and host of animal species.
Since 1980, the world wide glacier melting rate has become double. And the 1990s was the hottest decade of the earth during the last 1000 years. The melting of Himalayan glaciers is an important issue as it can have catastrophic effect on the ecology not only of Indian region but whole of the world. The melting of the glaciers will eventually trigger more droughts; deserts and increasing of storms.
The well known Gangotri glacier where the river Ganga originates is receding at the rate of 25m per year for the last three decades. Accelerated melting of glacier will raise rivers water level initially and in the long run its flow will diminish. Similar might be the situation of the river Indus and the river Brahmaputra.
The hydrological studies of all the main rivers of Jammu and Kashmir Himalayas like the Jhelum, the Lidder, Chenab and their tributaries, revealed that their discharge have become half these days as compared to 50 to 60 years ago due to receding of the glaciers. Similar is the situation of the rivers-Beas, Sutlej, Ravi and their tributaries in Himachal Pradesh Himalayas. Climate change and less snow fall is the result of shrinking of glaciers of Kashmir and Jammu.
The Department of Science and Technology, GOI has done a good job in floating a mega research project costing Rupees 185 million as revealed in the aforesaid editorial. This project will be dealt in by the scientists of Kashmir,Jammu, JNU and Sikkim Universities. Let us hope to obtain good results after conducting the research in the Himalayan glaciers. This kind of research will be in a right direction.
Yours etc….
Prof R.D. Gupta
258-C,Sainik Colony,
Jammu
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