Bonani Roychoudhury
When on 4 October 2023 heavy rains caused the glacial South Lhonak lake in Sikkim, a state in north-eastern India, to breach its banks causing a glacial lake outburst flood, it was a natural disaster which made India wake up to these time-bombs ticking along the vast Himalayan mountain-ranges.
It is worth recounting today what happened on that fateful day: flood waters reached the Teesta III Dam at Chungthang at midnight, and even before its gates could be opened, the dam was destroyed in minutes. Water levels downstream in the Teesta river rose by up to 20 feet (6.1 m), causing widespread damage.
The Indo-Tibetan Border Police had been quick to act at midnight, but they could not save the dam, as well as the bridge to its 1200-MW hydroelectric powerhouse. These were completely submerged. The water-levels in Teesta river rose by 15 to 20 feet (4.6 to 6.1 m), flooding many areas in Sikkim, as well as downstream areas in the eastern Indian state of West Bengal. The flood waters gushed onwards to Bangladesh, affecting hundreds of villages along the Teesta river and Char (flood plains) areas.
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