DEVELOPMENT STORY
Photos from local TV channels show water flowing towards a dam in the state of Uttarakhand, washing away parts of it.
Dozens of dead in India fear after Himalayan glacier shattered and collapses into hydro-electric dam with people being hurriedly moved amid rising water levels on a nearby river hand.
Pictures from TV channels and the ANI news agency showed water flowing towards the dam in Uttarakhand state on Sunday, washing away parts of it and whatever was in its path.
Uttarakhand’s chief secretary of state, Om Prakash, said up to 150 people were feared dead but “the exact number has not yet been confirmed”.
Uttarakhand Police Chief Ashok Kumar told reporters that more than 50 people working at the dam, Rishiganga Hydroelectric Project, were frightened, although others were rescued.
Rescue work to clean Tapovan tunnel from debris after floods [Indo Tibetan Border Police handout via AFP]
Kumar also said authorities had emptied other dams to flood the water flowing in from the Alakananda river.
A witness said he saw a wall of dust, rocks and water as an avalanche moved down a river valley.
“It came very quickly, there was no time to contact anyone,” Sanjay Singh Rana, who lives in the highlands of Raini city, told Reuters news agency by phone. “I felt like we were even swept away.”
Local authorities said districts including Pauri, Tehri, Rudraprayag, Haridwar and Dehradun have been vigilant.
‘The country is praying’
The Times of India newspaper reported that Prime Minister Narendra Modi said he was monitoring the situation in Uttarakhand.
“India stands by Uttarakhand and the country prays for the safety of everyone there. Constantly talking to high authorities and getting updates on… rescue and relief work, ”said Modi.
The Indian air force was reading it to help with rescue work, the federal government said, while Home Minister Amit Shah said disaster response teams were getting in to help with relief and rescue.
Soldiers had already been deployed and military helicopters were conducting an air reconnaissance of the area.
‘Hydro-electric projects halted’
Uttarakhand in the Himalayas is prone to showers of floods and landslides. In June 2013, higher rainfall caused severe flooding claiming nearly 6,000 lives.
That disaster was called the “Himalayan tsunami” because of the floods of water released in the mountainous area, which knocked down mud and rocks, buried homes, swept away buildings, roads and bridges. .
State Disaster Response Fund workers prepare for deployment in the state of Uttarakhand [AFP]
Uma Bharti, India’s former water resources minister and Modi party chief executive, has criticized the construction of a power project in the region.
“When I was a minister I wanted the Himalayas to be a very sensitive place, so power projects should not be built on Ganga and the main tributaries,” she said on Twitter, referring to the main river flowing from the mountain.
Environmental experts have called for a halt to major hydroelectric projects in the state.
“This disaster once again calls for a major study of the hydroelectric dams building a spree in this eco-sensitive area,” said Ranjan Panda, a volunteer for the Climate Change Network working on water issues, environment and climate change.
“The government should no longer ignore warnings from experts and stop hydroelectric projects and extensive highway networks in this fragile ecosystem.”