Cloudburst in the Himalayan region and its impact on hydro projects - is there a way out? Specific reference to cloudbursts in Kullu district of Himachal Pradesh, India

摘要

Year after year there are hundreds of people falling preys to the hydrometerological disaster events. These natural calamities have been reinforced by the global climatic changes together with the increasing population pressure and changing habitation patterns. The result is large-scale migration of populations, scarce resources, damage to the pristine ecosystems, destruction to the economical and social infrastructure and a blow to the overall development of the nation. Such type of scenarios would inevitably be a major challenge to the government and it is high time that we look into the aspects and provide a framework to mitigate such happenings. Hence promoting sustainable development is one such counter strategy to prevent such bleak scenarios into becoming reality.rnThe objective of the paper is to take stock of the present state of preparedness and to present an outline for a need of a government strategy for disaster preparedness and prevention in case of cloudbursts. The paper examines the impact of the natural phenomenon of cloudburst on hydro projects in the Himalayan region. This is examined through the case of the Pulia cloudburst, which occurred in the early hours of 16th July 2003 and the Jigrai cloudburst that occurred on 8th August 2004 in Kullu district of Himachal Pradesh, India. The impact of these cloudbursts on the 800MW Parbati Hydroelectric Project, Stage Ⅱ (a mega project of national importance) being constructed by National Hydroelectric Power Corporation is analyzed. The paper reveals that the impact of cloudbursts (which are more frequent in the Himalayan region) on hydro projects are to be taken up in the right earnest during the planning and execution stages so as to mitigate the consequences. Such loss was beyond the control of human being. Thus natural calamities like these have to be handled with preparedness and we have to be well equipped to avert the loss to human lives and loss to the nation as a whole. Hence this tragic incident highlights the need for properrnpreparedness on the part of every citizen and in turn the Government authorities. The paper thus brings out an evaluation framework that is necessary to put Disaster Management in its place. Also the government has to take a leading role in the pursuit of a disaster reduction strategy within the context of sustainable development. The main features of the paper are:rn1. Evaluation of the consequences of possible serious damage to the project.rn2. Provision to be made to minimize any deleterious effects.rn3. A need to formulate an emergency disaster - database management plan for all lydro projects coming up in the Himalayan region.rn4. In the post disaster scenario there is need for setting up a rapid action disaster management team.rn5. And last but not the least there should be awareness among the general public about the natural phenomena of cloudburst.