How Melting Glaciers in Northeast India Are Making Communities Vulnerable

On October 4, 2023, a glacial lake called South Lhonak in the northeast state of Sikkim in India breached. The hurling waters and boulders swelled up the river Teesta, and washed away the 1200-MW Teesta III hydropower project. The floods wreaked destruction along the river’s path downstream, killing 55 people, leaving over 70 missing, and displacing more than 7,000 from their homes. Even today, those evacuated continue to live in temporary arrangements with relatives in different villages and in free accommodations provided by religious centers.

The deluge of silt and sand that the river carried also led to long-term impacts that lasted months after the disaster, particularly in the neighbouring state of West Bengal.

Scroll follows the path of destruction along the river Teesta to speak with local communities about the systemic vulnerabilities their livelihoods face, living in the shadow of many such potentially dangerous lakes, and understanding how the state plans to prepare for such disasters in the future.