Photo: from the Facebook wall of Prem Singh Tamang-Golay, Sikkim CM 
Natural Disasters

DTE Coverage: Sikkim Disaster 2023, as it happened

Down To Earth covered the unfolding disaster of the South Lhonak Lake bursting from various angles

Team EastMojo, Preetha Banerjee, Anushna Chamei, Jayanta Basu, Shagun, Himanshu Nitnaware, Rajat Ghai, Parijat Ghosh, Dibyendu Chaudhuri, Varsha Singh, Mohd Imran Khan

After central, now eastern Himalayas? Glacial lake outburst in North Sikkim sparks alert across the state


Downstream areas such as Darjeeling and north Bangladesh to be affected as water travels in the Teesta river
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Sikkim floods: Glacial lakes hold paleoenvironmental traces. What happens to them during outbursts?


Moraine-bound lakes like Sikkim's South Lhonak contain geological archives called varves
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Sikkim: Here’s why the Chungthang Hydro-dam breach is a big deal


The breach has led to the release of an astonishing 5.08 million cubic metres of water from the hydro reservoir
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Sikkim floods: Why wasn’t early warning system set up at glacial lake known to be highly vulnerable? Experts ask


South Lhonak Lake that burst was one of the fastest expanding lakes in the region & its dangers were not unknown
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Sikkim: Chungthang dam breach another reminder of climate risks associated with hydropower


As parts of the dam washed away due to glacial lake outburst, it reportedly released an alarming 5.08 million cubic metres of water from its reservoir
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Sikkim: Threat of South Lhonak lake bursting was forewarned by researchers two years ago


Twenty-one other glacial lakes in the Teesta river basin show potential threat
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Nepal earthquakes might have triggered outburst of Sikkim lake that expanded rapidly in 11 days, shows data


Dam being examined; bodies being recovered as Teesta recedes
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Sikkim, the land blessed by Guru Rinpoche, is being destroyed by anthropogenic activity: Yishey Doma


The author of several books on Sikkimese religion, folklore and culture speaks with Down To Earth in the light of the South Lhonak Lake disaster
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Sikkim’s Chungthang dam collapse signals the need for dam safety & emissions reduction


Any hydroelectric project situated downstream of unstable lakes carries the risk of being washed away.
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Avalanche, cloudburst, flood: Researcher lays out chronology of events that led to Sikkim disaster


Climate change ultimate trigger for South Lhonak glacial lake outburst flood
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‘Climate change may increase risk of glacial lakes bursting, Sikkim-like disasters may spike’


Down to Earth spoke to Kalachand Sain, director, Wadia Institute of Himalayan Geology, Dehradun, to understand the causes of the Sikkim glacial lake outburst flood
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Himalayas not ‘fragile’; disasters there not ‘natural’ & don’t just have to be ‘managed’: Study


Research conducted in Himachal’s tribal Kinnaur district challenges conventional narratives; advocates indigenous knowledge
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Chungthang dam breach hits milk supply in Sikkim as Bihar halts deliveries amid road damage


Some co-operative federations started making milk powder given the supply chain disruptions
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