Icy flood of Thame village

The recent flood that caused huge damage in parts of Thame village in Mt. Sagarmatha region should remind Nepalis of the urgent need to address the negative impact of climate change. The people in the decision level of the country can no longer pass time talking about climate change; they have to act effectively to arrest its adverse impact. Flood until recently was the worrying story of the monsoon season; now because of high temperature resulting in melting snow, the risk attached to glaciers or glacial lakes in the higher Himalayas has emerged as yet another problem for people living in river sides or in the valley downstream. The icy flood- the clear consequence of the glacial outburst –that Thame residents experienced should be taken seriously and efforts not to allow such repetition should be made. Although the government is conscious of its duty towards reducing the adverse impact of climate change, concrete actions have not yet been taken in this regard. Scientists have time and again warned about the growing risk of high temperature in the Himalayan region. The risk is multi-dimensional – it not only affects the human settlements and natural resources in the riverside, it damages the base of agriculture and other sources of living throughout the areas downstream. The cyclical effect of melting snow and glacial lakes is very serious. It affects various aspects of human life in areas which depend on the Himalayan rivers for their living, irrigation need, drinking water and settlements. The government should actually launch a campaign to reduce the impact of melting snow in the Himalayas through appropriate messaging instruments. The general understanding of people that the climate change is the agenda of the westerners and not that of Nepalis should be changed. Although Nepal does not contribute more to global warming, it suffers most from the adverse effect of rising temperature. The point should also be conveyed to international experts of climate change through proper messaging. The flood of Thame village particularly its suddenness, unpredictability and huge damage should be analyzed adequately and lessons from the same should be drawn in a professional and scientific manner. ICIMOD had in its 2020 report warned about the risks of melting snow and glacial outbursts. Planners and decision makers could learn lessons from it and based on them they should develop schemes for minimizing the risk. In the meanwhile substantial assistance package should be given to all the villagers in Thame who suffered from the icy flood. Efforts should be made for restoring the earlier fame, popularity and attraction of the Thame village. Its great contribution to tourism particularly in the area of high altitude mountaineering is too great to be forgotten.  Let this flood in Thame village inspire all concerned to be more serious about lessening the adverse impact of melting snow!