Chungthang: In June 2021, Sikkim Government had requested the central government for an Early Warning System to be installed as a precautionary measure against a possible Glacial Lake Outburst Flood.
Following the GLOF of South Lhonak Lake, upon being asked by the media on Sunday, Sikkim’s lone Lok Sabha MP Indra Hang Subba shared, “Even the Government of India and the concerned ministry are working on the installation of the Early Warning System. In the entire Himalayan Range, the EWS is yet to be installed, but the work is going on. As far as I know, a certain amount has been sanctioned in the previous budget. The implementation process is there. But we are yet to have that complete warning system. As far as this calamity is concerned, the warning was given, that is how a whole lot of people could be saved. They were evacuated before the flood could hit Chungthang. There was a certain level of warning issued. At this point when we have such advanced technology, this can be improved in the coming years. Given the disaster that we faced, we will request the central government to reconsider this very seriously.”
There is a debate whether this was a Glacial Lake Outburst Flood or a cloudburst, the MP answered, “Because of climate change, there is glacial instability, not only in our Himalayan State but the entire Himalayan Range. But to ascertain whether it was a GLOF or a cloudburst, an expert committee will be formed by the government. The central government is keen on knowing all these things. After the expert committee comments on this, only then can we ascertain.”
On the absence of National Disaster Relief Force, the MP answered, “There is NDRF in Rangpo and Singtam, but in this part of the State, there is no communication currently. We do not have an alternative route to come here (Chungthang). We had to walk one or two hours; it took us 2-3 days to reach here. Now we have NDRF here; we were trying to airlift them, but the weather conditions were inappropriate. So the NDRF will be here, some have already reached here.”
On being asked how a private helicopter of Teesta Urja Limited could reach Lachung but not that of the Indian Air Force, Subba answered, “We took a single flight to ensure that Rural Development Minister Sonam Lama could reach Lachung. That too was also carried out forcefully. But we couldn’t have multiple flights; we tried, but we couldn’t, it failed.”
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On being asked about the lack of intervention by the Central government, the MP answered, “The central government has sanctioned 40 plus Crore Rupees as Disaster Relief Fund; this is merely the first phase of funds, and more funds will follow. Even the MOS Home is in Gangtok currently; they are having a discussion with the State government. Also, he must have met the Chief Minister today. The Central government is with us; they are helping us. We are hopeful that during reconstruction, they will help us.”
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