At least in Nepal, our ancestors were wise to locate settlements away from a river. This can be seen in the three towns of the Kathmandu Valley and also in the hills
The world, in general, and India, in particular, were shocked by the massive debris flow which swept the Dhaleri Kheer Ganga riverside township in a matter of just 34 seconds on that unfortunate afternoon last Monday. Many people were killed, including one Nepali worker. Several people were miraculously rescued by the quick Indian rescuers, which reached the damaged site within hours of the mishap. It may be noted that they have made their presence in several parts of the world within an incredibly short time of a massive disaster.
The examples are the 2015 morning earthquake in Nepal, when Indian assistance with rescuer experts had landed at Tribhuvan International Airport by evening. Similarly, Indian planes had touched down at Ankara airport the very next day after Turkey was struck by a killer earthquake. The political relationship, however, remains strained between India and Turkey after Turkey's open support to Pakistan in the last Indo-Pakistan conflict.
This columnist was equally horrified by the sight of the debris flow of unimaginable proportion as it was the stopover town for afternoon refreshment during the recent pilgrimage trip to Gangottari. During the trip, I encountered several Nepali workers who carried the palanquin, the bamboo basket, and drove the horses carrying the pilgrims particularly in Yamunottari and Kedar Nath. The work was so burdensome that they tried to forget it by playing Nepali folk songs which are marked by fun and frolic. Many of them said they had to take this horrendous task due to lack of suitable employment opportunities back in Nepal.
What were the causes of this killer disaster? It could be clear from satellite images, which, however, have not been available reportedly due to the cloudy sky during the devastating event. The possible causes forwarded are, firstly, the multiple cloud bursts. Cloud bursts occur when the rainfall is of the order of about 100 millimeters in an hour. Secondly, it is due to the visit by thousands of pilgrims and tourists in the state – nearly 50 million annually in a state of 15 million population. The third is the rather fragile geology of the area, which has further been weakened by reckless felling of trees. The fourth is of course the now too familiar global warming caused by climate change. The fifth one could be due to glacial lake outburst in view of the presence of 83 glaciers with 13 vulnerable ones in this area.
Whatever the cause, this is not the first time such a calamity has occurred in this part of India. In 2013, Kedar Nath's peripheral hamlet was done to bits and pieces after a massive flood struck it, killing 5,000 people. One large stone, now known as the Bhim stone, saved the temple by standing behind it. It is now worshipped with a lot of faith and devotion as the saviour of the much-revered temple. Similar disasters have rocked this area afterwards. But the government does not appear to have drawn any lesson from this disaster regarding the need for planned development.
In the future, academicians and researchers may highlight the factors that led to this unfortunate event. But for a layman, it is glaringly clear that it was caused by the injudicious location of the tourist settlement within the flood plain of the river. The settlement had poked its dirty nose into the river's territory, thereby inviting such terrible wrath.
At least in Nepal, our ancestors were wise to locate settlements away from a river. This can be seen in the three towns of the Kathmandu Valley – Kantipur, Lalitpur, and Bhaktapur in particular. In the hills, settlements were traditionally not established on steep highlands or in river-dominated lowlands, but rather in the gently contoured midlands. This practice aligned with the Chanakya doctrine, which advised maintaining an optimal distance from a river, fire, and a king, recognising that each carries both advantages and disadvantages.
The disadvantages are that a river can create floods, a fire can convert a lively settlement to ashes in no time, while the king may order even capital punishment. But the advantages are that they also provide water for drinking and irrigation, warmth in winter, and security against outside attackers, respectively.
Nepal saw similar events in Rasuwa where the Bhote Koshi or the Langde River swelled to an all-time high after being fed by the glacial lake outburst flood in China.
The dry port located by the riverbank vanished within seconds, much like the town of Dhaleri. This could have been avoided had the port been located beyond the river's reach, even at its most extreme. Similarly, the settlement of Thame –birthplace of the legendary Tenzing Norgay – was virtually wiped out following a glacial lake outburst upstream.
Such problems are likely to recur regularly in the future. There are two ways to approach them: one is to run away from the problem, like a yogi practising celibacy; the other is to confront it head-on, like the general populace who embrace life by marrying and raising children. The first one can be done by locating the new settlements far away from the rivers and gullies. The second one can be applied by undertaking heavy forestation and the construction of a maximum number of ponds in the vulnerable area. Both of these means can control such mishaps like tigers hunting in pairs.
Such interventions will bring down the temperature, preventing glacial lake outbursts by the formation of a micro-climate. Although planting trees and digging ponds in remote, steeply contoured glacial lake regions can be challenging, these efforts may be far easier than facing disasters of such stupendous scale at regular intervals in the future.
