Nepal is known as the land of the Himalayas and a country of snow-covered mountains, but its unique geographical structure also makes it vulnerable to natural hazards. The devastating floods that struck Nepal in recent days have sent a clear message to the world that countries such as Pakistan are not immune to the growing threats posed by climate change, melting glaciers, and natural disasters.
In the early hours of August 26, before people in the border region between Nepal and Tibet in China had even awakened, a massive chunk of glacier collapsed into a lake thousands of meters below. The force with which ice rock fell and struck the ground was so intense that it triggered a 5.2-magnitude earthquake, generating a powerful flood wave that gave people virtually no time to reach safer locations. The torrent swept through valleys, power projects, roads, and bridges, causing widespread destruction. As a result of this catastrophic disaster, more than 1,400 people in Nepal and China have been killed, while more than 5,000 Nepalese and Chinese citizens, along with hundreds of foreign tourists, remain missing.
The recent disaster in Nepal has once again drawn the world’s attention to issues such as climate change, with rising temperatures in the Himalayas being cited as a major contributing factor. According to environmental experts, a warming atmosphere is playing a significant role in the melting of glaciers, changes in snow and ice reserves, and the weakening of permanently frozen glaciers and ice structures in high-altitude areas. As a result, rocks and ice formations that had remained relatively stable for centuries are becoming increasingly unstable. The flooding in Nepal was also unusual because conventional floods generally occur as a result of heavy rainfall and overflowing rivers, whereas the primary cause of the recent disaster was sudden collapse of glaciers and rocks. The economic cost of the destruction is estimated at more than $5 billion, equivalent to approximately 10 percent of Nepal’s economy.
This devastation is not merely Nepal’s problem, it is a concern for other countries in the region as well. Like Nepal, Pakistan contributes very little to global greenhouse gas emissions, yet the Himalayan region is becoming an important hotspot for the effects of climate change. As a result, countries that contribute relatively little to greenhouse gas emissions are being forced to face consequences largely linked to emissions generated around the world. The incident is particularly significant for Pakistan because the country has an extensive mountain system in the north, including the Hindu Kush, Karakoram, and Himalayan ranges, where thousands of glaciers and glacial lakes are located. According to global environmental indices, Pakistan is among the ten countries most vulnerable to climate change. More than 7,000 glaciers exist in Pakistan’s northern regions, and rising temperatures are causing them to melt rapidly, potentially resulting in sudden floods. The abnormal melting of these glaciers is becoming an increasingly serious threat to Pakistan. Around 70 percent of the total water flowing through Pakistan’s rivers comes from the melting of glaciers. However, untimely and accelerated melting of these glaciers in recent years could lead to devastating floods in the future. It is worth remembering that Pakistan experienced some of the worst floods in its history in 2010 and 2022, when approximately one-third of the country was submerged.
The devastating floods in Nepal and Tibet are therefore not merely a natural disaster occurring in a distant region for Pakistan, they are a clear warning and an important lesson. The tragedy has once again demonstrated that, in the era of climate change, risks facing mountainous regions are no longer limited to conventional floods, heavy rainfall, or earthquakes. The sudden collapse of glaciers, bursting of glacial lakes, landslides, and the extremely powerful floods that can occur within minutes have now become interconnected hazards.
At a time when Pakistan’s northern areas, particularly the mountainous regions of Gilgit-Baltistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, are rapidly developing into centers of tourism, trade, and construction, large numbers of domestic and foreign tourists are visiting these areas. This is certainly a welcome economic opportunity. However, if this development takes place while ignoring climatic and geographical risks, very natural beauty and economic activity that we seek to promote could become the cause of major human tragedies in the future. In the years ahead, an economically successful country will not necessarily be the one that has built the greatest number of roads, hotels, and buildings in its mountainous regions to promote tourism. Rather, truly successful country will be the one that has made its tourist destinations safe. Pakistan should therefore reconsider its development model for the northern areas and adopt an approach in which the protection of human life is given priority over tourism, trade, and employment. Sustainable development must ensure that economic progress goes hand in hand with disaster preparedness, climate resilience, and the safety of local communities and visitors.
