Nepal PM Proposes Himalayan Climate Mechanism, Seeks India-China Satellite Data Sharing
Nepal PM Balendra Shah urges India and China to jointly address Himalayan climate risks, sharing satellite data and strengthening disaster preparedness.
By Pranjal Gupta
New Delhi, September 25: Nepal Prime Minister Balendra Shah addressed the fragile Himalayan ecology at the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), calling for collective efforts by India and China, which share the same geography. In August, Nepal experienced massive flash floods triggered by an ice-rock avalanche near the Nepal-Tibet border, prompting its neighbours to help contain the situation.
Shah stated that “climate change does not recognise borders. Glaciers and floods do not travel with a visa stamped on passports.” He advocated for a Himalayan Climate Resilience Mechanism, to be led by Nepal, India and China.
“The Hindu Kush Himalaya is home to nearly two billion people. These mountains provide water, ecosystems, agriculture and livelihoods to populations far beyond Nepal. The Himalayas are not peripheral to the planet. They are part of the planet's life-support system,” Shah said.
“That is why, as an urgent first step, we propose that we establish a Himalayan Climate Resilience Mechanism, led by Nepal, India and China,” Shah said.
Satellite Data to Monitor Critical Glacier Activities
Balendra Shah proposed that the mechanism should facilitate the sharing of satellite data and help predict situations like those Nepal recently witnessed.
“Let us monitor dangerous glacial lakes. Let us strengthen joint early-warning systems. And when disaster strikes, let us coordinate assistance across borders. Let the Himalayas become a laboratory of international cooperation, rather than a frontier of fragmented information,” he said.
“Melting permafrost is fracturing mountain slopes beneath the glaciers and accelerating the risks of ice-rock avalanches, floods, landslides and other cascading hazards. The resulting devastation unleashed havoc on both sides of the Nepal-China border. The flood continued downstream towards India,” he said.
He said that on the one hand, there are melting glaciers and failing harvests, while on the other, floods arrive without warning. At the same time, a global supply chain punishes poor people for causes beyond their control.
‘Flawless Logistics for War, Broken Logistics for Food’
“Intercontinental missiles arrive on time. Rifles and ammunition cross borders, clear every bottleneck and meet every deadline. But a peasant in Nepal cannot procure his fertiliser or fuel at market price at a time of need.
“We have built a world with flawless logistics for war and broken logistics for food.
“And this is not Nepal's private misfortune. Ask Bangladesh. Ask Bhutan. Ask India. Ask the Maldives. Ask Pakistan. Ask Sri Lanka. Ask any other country in our region, and you will hear the same account: hit by the climate we did not warm, and hit again by the wars we did not start.
“This tells us there is a lot more broken than meets the eye in the present order of global cooperation,” he said.
