Uttarkashi Cloudburst: Extreme weather or reckless construction? What's wreaking havoc in the Himalayas, experts decode
Videos that went viral on social media showed giant waves of water gushing through the area and swallowing everything in their way, including the hotels and residential buildings in Dharali town, 8,600 feet above sea level.
Heavy rain continued to pound Uttarkashi as rescuers resumed their operations on Wednesday in Dharali, searching for victims amid the rubble.
Scientists say India's Himalayan states have been bearing the brunt of rising extreme weather events since the beginning of the Southwest Monsoon 2025, with a suspected cloudburst in Uttarakhand being the most recent one.
On the afternoon of 5 August, a giant stream of water came down, gushing through the streets of Dharali village. While early visuals of the incidents indicated a possible cloudburst that triggered the flash floods, investigations are underway to ascertain the exact reason behind the catastrophic event.
Experts said that the changing snowfall and rainfall patterns due to climate change have made the Himalayas vulnerable. Glacier retreat and permafrost thaw have decreased the stability of mountain slopes and the integrity of infrastructure, they said, citing a special report on the cryosphere by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).
There is no doubt in blaming the rise in temperatures and humidity in the region for triggering back-to-back extreme weather events. 'With the axis of the monsoon trough running through the foothills of the Himalayas, we had already predicted a red alert for Uttarakhand. While the affected region is prone to cloudbursts, such a turn of events is due to the climate change-led rise in temperatures,' said Mahesh Palawat, Vice President- Meteorology and Climate Change, Skymet Weather.
Early warning predicted intense rainfall, bringing a greater risk of landslides in high-elevation regions, demanding the development of specific mitigation and adaptation plans at a faster pace. Due to climate change, hazards such as glacier retreat, permafrost degradation, and lake shrinkage occur frequently in high-altitude regions, often leading to slope instability and an increase in the occurrence of deep-seated landslides, the scientists said.
According to a research study, 'Increase in occurrence of large glacier‐related landslides in the high mountains of Asia', as many AS 127 landslides were detected in the Landsat images of the study area, covering the period from 1999 to 2018. The landslides are mainly concentrated in the Karakoram Mountains, the eastern part of the Pamir Mountains, the western Himalayas and south of the Hindu Kush.
Further, the rampant development of infrastructure like hotels, tunnels, roads, and hydropower projects in the ecologically sensitive region has aggravated the situation and economic losses, the scientists said.
'The role of global warming is already established in the rise of extreme weather events. We did not learn anything from the past disasters in 2013 (Kedarnath) and 2021 (Rishiganga). Why have there been no checks on unplanned construction in the region?,' said Dr YP Sundriyal, Professor of Geology at HNB Garhwal University.
Dr Sundriyal said that the Himalayas, the youngest mountain range in the world, are very fragile ecologically.
'This makes it a very sensitive region. Concerned authorities and local bodies should include scientists while carrying out any construction in the region, as they are well-versed in the geology. When such torrential rainfall occurs over hill slopes, it becomes more dangerous as debris flow leads to erosion due to landslides, making flash floods more powerful and disastrous,' he said.
According to experts, the need of the hour is to recognise that the increase in such events in Uttarakhand is not exclusively due to the climate crisis.
'Increased development activity in vulnerable regions creates new risks to the mountain community,' Anil Kulkarni, distinguished visiting scientist, Divecha Centre for Climate Change, Indian Institute of Science, told Hindustan Times.
Mallika Bhanot, environmentalist and member of Ganga Ahvaan, a civil society collective, says the river will take its route come what may. "It is only natural to expect that it will flow freely. Any hindrances to its flow will obviously cause disasters. The massive increase in the number of landslides is again completely linked to road construction on the Char Dham route,' Bhanot told Hindustan Times.
The role of global warming is already established in the rise of extreme weather events.
The Char Dham Highway Project in Uttarakhand is an ongoing initiative to improve road connectivity to the four sacred Hindu pilgrimage sites: Yamunotri, Gangotri, Kedarnath, and Badrinath. While the project is nearing completion with over 70% of the work done, some sections are still under construction. The project aims to provide all-weather access to these shrines and enhance travel safety and convenience for pilgrims.
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