According to reports, the melting of the glaciers of the Hindu Kush Himalayan region will affect over 1.65 billion lives. By Sushmita Srivastav
If we didn’t do anything about the climate chaos now, it will be too late for us to get a hold later. According to a latest report by The International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD), more than a third of the Himalayan glaciers will melt by the end of the century if nothing is done in time to reduce the hazardous global emissions. If no immediate actions are taken to achieve the climate control goals, the loss can even rise up to two-thirds!
The first-of-its-kind ‘The Hindu Kush Himalaya Assessment’ also states that the rising temperatures are a serious threat to the region that includes China, India, Pakistan and Afghanistan. The thinning down of these glaciers can bring drastic miseries to the lives of over 1.65 billion people, as they are the source for 10 of the world’s most important rivers, including the Ganges, Indus, Yellow, Mekong and Irrawaddy. Through direct or indirect ways, the Hindu Kush Himalaya region is responsible for providing sources of income and supplies of food, energy and clean air to billions of lives.
This would also mean many more natural calamities, and extreme weather conditions to occur in near future, opening hundreds of glacial lakes to the risk of bursting, and causing destructive floods all around. India is expected to fall at a risk of facing much worse monsoons.
The 650-page report was prepared in the course of five years by a team of 350 researchers and policy experts, 185 organisations, 210 authors, 20 review editors and 125 external reviewers who were picked from 22 different countries.
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