NEW DELHI: India is setting up high-tech warning systems at nearly 200 Himalayan glacial lakes at risk of bursting their banks, a deadly threat exacerbated by climate change, disaster officials said on Tuesday.
India´s Himalayas contain at least 7,500 glacial lakes, many of which pose risks of dangerous flash floods.
Teams from India´s National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) are targeting 190 high-altitude lakes deemed to be the most dangerous in a mission slated to take three years.
“We have already made significant strides in mitigating risks”, Safi Ahsan Rizvi, a senior NDMA official directing the mission, told AFP.