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Urbanisation Challenges in the Himalayan Region in
the Context of Climate Change Adaptation and
Disaster Risk Mitigation 1
ABOUT IHCAP
The Indian Himalayas Climate Adaptation
Programme (IHCAP) is a project under the Global
Programme Climate Change and Environment (GPCCE)
of the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation
(SDC), and is being implemented in partnership
with the Department of Science and Technology
(DST), Government of India. IHCAP is supporting the
implementation of the National Mission for Sustaining
the Himalayan Ecosystem (NMSHE) as a knowledge
and technical partner. The overall goal of IHCAP is to
strengthen the resilience of vulnerable communities
in the Himalayas and to enhance and connect the
knowledge and capacities of research institutions,
communities and decision-makers.
Published by IHCAP
Copyright © IHCAP 2017. All Rights Reserved. Published
in India
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This report is available in the electronic form at:
http://www.ihcap.in/resources.html
Urbanisation Challenges in the
Himalayan Region in the Context of
Climate Change Adaptation and
Disaster Risk Mitigation
Acknowledgements
Center for Urban Green Spaces (CUGS) is
thankful for the support provided by the Indian
Himalayas Climate Adaptation Programme, a
project of the Swiss Agency for Development
and Cooperation, New Delhi that made this
work possible.
A discussion paper was prepared by Center
for Urban Green Spaces, New Delhi. The
same was discussed in detail at an Expert
Consultation conducted on the sidelines of the
2nd biennial International Congress on Green
Urban Futures 2014 (urbanfutures2014) in
Bangalore (3-7 November 2014). The expert
consultation involved representatives not only
from the various Himalayan states of India
and Nepal but also from independent agencies
and academia. We are grateful to all the
eminent experts who took time off their busy
schedule to participate in the consultations
and give useful insights into complexities of
the Himalayan ecosystem and urbanization
challenges that the region is confronted with.
The document at hand is an outcome of Expert
Consultation in Bangalore and informal
consultations with various experts from
different walks of life.
Special gratitude mention for Dr. Prodipto
Ghosh, Distinguished Fellow, TERI and
former Secretary, Ministry of Environment,
Forests and Climate Change for supporting
and encouraging us through this exercise.
Last but not the least, sincere thanks to Dr.
Sudhir Krishna for not only anchoring and
leading the Expert Consultation in Bangalore
but also for reviewing various drafts of the
document at hand on multiple occasions
and providing various and very valuable
suggestions.
Contents
Chapter
1
2
3
4
5
Particulars
Page No.
Acknowledgements
5
Executive Summary
7
The Himalayas
11
An Overview
Urbanisation in the Indian Himalayan Region
Trends and Characteristics
19
Climate Change & Indian Himalayan Region
25
Climate Change Adaptation&Disaster Risk Reduction
in Himalayan Region
33
An Urbanising Indian Himalayan Region
Administrative and Governance Challenges
40
Way forward
45
References
50
Appendix
54
Case Study - 1
56
Extent and Dimensions
Governance and Institutional Framework
Nainital, Uttrakhand
Executive Summary
C
overing a total area of about 230,000
square miles (595,000 square km) and
literally meaning the “abode of snow,”
the Himalayas epitomize earth’s grandeur.
Characterized by extreme altitude, complex
geology and rich vegetation, this majestic
landscape has inspired awe and reverence.
The Himalayas are just 45 million years (Myr)
old, and as if to reflect their age, Himalayas
are still rising and tectonically more active
than most mountain ranges. They extend
over 2,500 Km from Nanga Parbat (Pakistan
occupied Kashmir) in the west to Namcha
Barwa (Tibet) in the east even as their width
(south to north) varies between 200-400 km
bordered to the north-west by the mountain
ranges of the Hindu Kush, Himalayas are the
largest deposit of snow and ice after Arctic
and Antartic regions and are often referred to
as the Third Pole, or the Water Tower of Asia.
More than 1.3 billion people live in the basins
of ten great rivers of the world that find their
origins in the Himalayas.
climate change resulting from anthropogenic
emissions and developmental paradigms of
the modern society.
The Indian Himalayan Region (IHR) straddles
ten states of India collectively referred to
as Indian Himalayan States (IHS) and two
countries namely Nepal and Bhutan. The
Indian states are Jammu & Kashmir, Himachal
Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Sikkim, Arunachal
Pradesh, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Manipur,
Mizoram, Tripura, and hill districts of Assam
(Dima Hasao and Karbi Anglong) and West
Bengal (Darjeeling).
The total population of the Indian Himalayan
States (IHS) is estimated to be 46.79 million.
Taking into account Bhutan and Nepal,
this figure swells to 73.99 million. Though
IHS account for around 4% of India’s total
population, they occupy 16.2% of India’s
geographical area. The average population
density across the Indian Himalayan States
is nearly one-third of the country’s density.
However if only altitudinal range where
humans can normally live were to be
considered, the density is much higher.
The region’s climatic zones contain a rich
diversity of species and ecosystems that
exist along a pronounced humidity gradient.
Among the 34 biodiversity hotspots of the
world, four are located in the Himalayas. This
makes Himalayas vital to the ecological and
economic security of the Indian landmass
through providing forest cover, feeding
perennial rivers that are the source of
drinking water, irrigation and hydropower,
conserving biodiversity, providing a rich base
for high value agriculture and spectacular
landscapes for sustainable tourism. Yet, the
region is extremely fragile and threatened.
The Himalayan ecosystem is vulnerable and
susceptible to the impacts and consequences
of changes on account of natural causes,
With the exception of Jammu & Kashmir
and Manipur, the Indian Himalayan States
have per capita state GDP values either close
to the national average (e.g. Meghalaya), or
higher than the national average. The average
percentage of population below poverty line
in the IHS is significantly lower than all India
average.
The pace of India’s urbanisation has been
slow by international standards. India’s
share of urban population in 2011 was 31
per cent, compared to around 50 per cent in
China, Indonesia and Nigeria, In the past 60
years, India’s urban population share rose
7
from 17 per cent to 31 per cent, while China’s
quadrupled from 12 per cent to 49 per cent.
Nevertheless, the number of people involved is
large: In the 20 years from 1991 to 2011, India’s
urban population rose to 377 million - 160
million more than in 1991 and 90 million more
than in 2001. By 2031 the urban population is
projected to reach 600 million i.e. around 40
per cent of the national population.
A significant extent of urbanisation in the IHR
can be attributed to the tourism sector that is
the main stay of the economy of hill states.
Tourist arrivals, as a percentage of resident
population is as high as 300% in Uttarakhand,
185% in Himachal Pradesh, 118% in Sikkim
and 80% in the J&K. The main pressure of
tourism influx in borne by cities and towns.
It is to be noted that due to climatic reasons
number of tourists is not spread across the year
but largely concentrated in “season” months
of April-July and October-November. Large
number and skewed temporal distribution
of tourist arrivals in Himalayan hill stations
and pilgrimage centers has its own impact on
economic and urban development patterns as
well as natural resource management in hill
areas. As a result, the cities of the Himalayas
are witnessing the same rot as Indian cities in
the plains, from mountains of trash, untreated
sewage, chronic water shortages, unplanned
urban growth and air pollution due to growing
number of vehicles owned either by local
residents or those brought by/for tourists.
The increase in urban population is an outcome
of three distinct factors: a natural increase
in population within urban areas, migration
of people from rural to urban areas, and
reclassification of settlements from rural to
urban. All three factors have been at work over
the past decade. This is also the predominant
trend in the IHR. The share of urban population
in the IHS rose to 26 per cent in 2011, from
21 per cent in 2001. Though this increase is
considerably less than the national figure of
31%, it is notable that the urban population
in the Himalayan states grew at not less than
40 per cent, much more than the meager 12
per cent growth of their rural population, and
certainly faster than the growth in the all-India
picture.
Their location abutting glacial melt pathways
or on steep slopes especially in ecologically
fragile
and
environmentally
sensitive
landscape makes Himalayan cities particularly
susceptible to consequences of climate change,
manifested with increasing frequency by
natural disasters leading to serious loss of life
and property. Managing climate change in
urban centres in the mountains would be far
more challenging and costlier than in plains
because of the prevalence of smaller urban
units, scattered across difficult terrain, varying
in altitude and topographical location.
The scarcity of water and land because of
steep and unstable slopes, and long distances
from rail heads, airports and other transport
connections limit the size of cities and towns
in mountains. Of the six population size
classes, the three smaller classes (<20,000
population per city) account for 78.5% of 320
cities and towns of the IHS. Only 11 (12 when
Darjeeling is also included) cities have more
people than 0.1 million. Within the mountains,
urban out-growth is a new, but now a common
phenomenon. Because of the poor returns
of agriculture, the lack of basic amenities
including drinking water, poor schooling
and health facilities migration from villages
to towns in search of jobs is an important
factor that has stressed towns and cities in the
Himalayas beyond sustainable limits.
The ice cover is decreasing in the Indian
Himalayan Region, as for most glaciers in
the world. The rate of retreat has increased in
recent years. Though controversies with regard
to the rate of change in glaciers still persist,
the overall trend based on data of a relatively
higher confidence level is that the Himalayan
8
glaciers are generally losing ice rapidly.
f. Aligning
tourist/pilgrim
footfalls
with carrying capacity of landscape.
Recover from tourists a fair share of the
cost development and maintenance of
infrastructure and services required to
handle tourist traffic.
It has been estimated that Himalayan glaciers
lost about 174 gigatonnes of water between
2003 and 2009 contributing to catastrophic
floods of the Indus, Ganges and Brahmaputra
rivers. Processes determining the conversion
of glaciers, ice and snow into run off and
downstream flow are complex, but the impact
of climate change on river regimes is expected
to be profound. Regardless of the source,
overall discharge is predicted to increase in all
major river basins. This in turn, is predicted
to increase the frequency of extreme events.
Natural Disasters are of diverse types ranging
from earth quakes, landslides, glacial lake
bursts, cloudbursts, storms and forest fires.
The phenomenon of climate change is largely
associated (by way of influencing intensity
and/or frequency) with hydro-meteorological
events, and their consequences, that have a
potential to become “disasters” for human
societies and settlements that interface with
them during their course of play.
g. Limiting vehicular traffic through demand
and supply side management.
h. Harnessing full potential of renewable
energy sources, especially geo-thermal,
solar and hydel to reduce fossil fuel
consumption.
Handling the challenge of steering the inevitable
phenomenon of urbanisation towards climate
neutral and disaster resilience requires urgent
steps. These steps can be categorized across
the decision making scale as:
i.
Enhancing availability of LPG and
banning use of fuelwood in urban areas to
not only reduce air pollution but also to
prevent destruction of surrounding forests
in interest of for ecological/water security
of cities and towns.
j.
Strengthening urban local bodies by
sincere implementing 74th Constitutional
amendment in letter and spirit to enable
them to inhouse develop capacities
and mechanisms for sustainable urban
planning, development and management.
k. Divert resources to develop affordable
housing to address slums which are mostly
located in disaster prone pockets.
a. Objective assessment of vulnerability of
each urban settlement.
On all the above issues, Himalayan cities have
a long way to go. But there is a new found
recognition about the scale of challenge and
likely outcomes of business as usual approach.
b. Installing early warning systems and alert
mechanisms.
Govt. of India’s National Action Plan on
Climate Change (NAPCC) outlines existing
and future policies and programs addressing
climate mitigation and adaptation. The plan
identifies eight core “national missions”
running through 2017. These national missions
are of special significance to the IHS which are
at forefront of the effort to adapt to the steadily
unfolding impact of climate change.
c. Orientation and sensitisation of target
populations strict enforcement.
d. Creating robust and effective disaster
response mechanisms in terms of
manpower, equipment and location of
response teams.
e. Enforcing building codes and zonation
regulations without exceptions.
9
Of the 8 “national missions” five, as listed
below, are particularly relevant to the task at
hand in IHR.
National Mission for
Himalayan Ecosystem
Sustaining
the
National Mission on Sustainable Habitat
National Mission on Strategic Knowledge
for Climate Change
National Solar Mission
National Mission for Enhanced Energy
Efficiency
The need of the hour is to identify “himalayan”
priorities under each mission and institutional
delivery mechanisms that understand the
special situation in this critical region.
Ministry of Environment, Forest, and Climate
Change (MoEFCC), Govt. of India is also
playing a proactive role in the area of climate
change and discharging principal role in global
and regional climate change negotiations
has encouraged each state to prepare a State
Climate Change Action Plans.
Indian Himalayan States, in their respective
State Action Plans (SAP) have considered
many climate change issues directly or
indirectly connected to urban areas including
regulation, urban transport, restoration of
green cover, sewage and waste treatment,
water supply, urban floods, energy, planning
and capacity building of municipal officials
and other urban bodies. However, SAPs do not
throw much light on inter-city, and intra-city
variations that charecterise the IHS as well as
existing social inequities that impact disaster
resilience. SAPs are also weak in social and
institutional aspects, with technological
aspects dominating the thought process.
India has made efforts to set up disaster
response infrastructure by way of setting up
National Disaster Response Force (NDRF).
However, th size of NDRF (8-10 Battalions
of paramilitary forces) is way too small for a
country of India’s size and diversity. States
need to be mandated to set up their own
disaster relief forces to reduce dependence
NDRF as well as to assist neighboring states in
case of need. Equally important are preventive
measures like disaster proof infrastructure,
enforcement of building regulations, and
adherence to proper landuse.
Indian Himalayan Region is under a phase of
rapid transformation of its natural landscape
and demographic profile due to economic
development and resultant rural urban
migration. Urban expansion has emerged
as a key driver of socio-economic and
environmental change in the Indian Himalayan
region broadly aligned to the general scenario
in the Indian subcontinent which has been
experiencing rapid urban growth but without
a matching focus of policy makers on
accommodating the migrating millions into
planned urban development and expansion.
Recent pronouncements of Government of
India to tackle the urbanisation challenge with
a sense of urgency that it deserves gives hope.
10
The Himalayas
An Overview
L
iterally meaning the “abode of snow”,
the Himalayas epitomize earth’s
grandeur. Characterized by extreme
altitude, complex geology and rich vegetation,
this majestic landscape has inspired awe
and commanded respect from humanity
like no other geological region on earth.
the west to Namcha Barwa (Tibet) in the
east, the Himalayas are bordered to the
northwest by the mountain ranges of the
Hindu Kush and the Karakoram and to the
north by the Plateau of Tibet. The width
of the Himalayas (south to north) varies
between 125 to 250 miles (200 to 400 km).
The Himalayas are just 45 million years
(Myr) old — mere striplings compared with
the Aravalis in India (around 4,000 Myr
old) and the North American Appalachians
(440–480 Myr). As if to reflect their age
Himalayas are still rising and tectonically
more active than most mountain ranges.
Covering a total area of about 230,000
square miles (595,000 square km), the
Himalayas include the highest mountains in
the world, with more than 110 peaks rising
to elevations of 24,000 feet (7,300 metres),
or more, including the Mount Everest,
the world’s highest, with an elevation of
29,035 feet (8,850 metres). In fact 30 peaks
exceed 7600 meters in elevation making
Greater Himalayas one of the greatest
Extending over 2500 KM from Nanga
Parbat (Pakistan occupied Kashmir) in
Ten major basin boundaries in the Hindu Kush-Himalaya
Source: (ICIMOD)
11
Urbanisation Challenges in the Himalayan Region in the context of
Climate Change Adaptation and Disaster Risk Mitigation
geo-ecological
systems
on
the
planet.
With the largest deposit of snow and ice
after Arctic and Antartic regions, Himalayas
are often referred to as the Third Pole, or
the Water Tower of Asia. With 60,000
KM2 of glacial area, the region is the
source of 10 rivers that sustain the vast
population of Asia, namely Indus, Ganga,
Brahmaputra, Amu Darya, Irrawaddy,
Salween, Mekong, Yangtze, Yellow and
Tarim. About 1.3 billion people live in the
combined drainage basin of these rivers.
On a map, from north to south the Himalayas
are grouped into four parallel, longitudinal
belts of Shivaliks (Outer Himalayas),
Himachal (Lower himlayas), Himadri
(Higher Himalayas) and Trans Himalayas
(Tibetan Himalayas). The Himalayas have
been divided into two regions: the Eastern
Himalaya, which covers parts of Nepal,
Bhutan, the northeast Indian states of West
Bengal, Sikkim, Assam, and Arunachal
Pradesh, southeast Tibet (China), and
northern Myanmar; and the Western
Himalaya, covering the Kumaon-Garhwal,
Annual precipitation (mm)
Pattern of Precipitation Across the Himalayan States (East To West).
Arunachal
Pradesh
Sikkim
Uttarakhand
12
Himachal
Pradesh
J&K
The Himalayas
An Overview
Kush Himalayas, 30% are endemic. The
Himalayas provide “asylum” to species
migrating under the influence of climate
change. Historically, four warm and cold
cycles occurred in the Himalayas during the
Quaternary alone. The highly heterogeneous
landscapes in the Himalayas saved many
species by providing refuge to them.
northwest Kashmir, and northern Pakistan.
While these divisions are largely artificial,
the deep defile carved by the antecedent
Kali Gandaki River between the Annapurna
and Dhaulagiri mountains has been an
effective dispersal barrier to many species.
Biogeographically, the Himalayan Mountain
Range straddles a transition zone between
the Palearctic and Indo-Malayan realms.
Species from both realms are represented
in the region. In addition, geological,
climatic and altitudinal variations, as well
as topographic complexity, contribute to
the biological diversity of the Himalayas
along their east-west and north-south axes.
The Himalayan ecosystem is fragile and
diverse. On one hand it includes more
than 50 million people who practice hill
agriculture and remain vulnerable. It is
vital to the ecological security of the Indian
landmass, through providing forest cover,
feeding perennial rivers that are the source of
drinking water, irrigation, and hydropower,
conserving biodiversity, providing a rich base
for high value agriculture, and spectacular
landscapes
for
sustainable
tourism.
The regions climatic zones contain a rich
diversity of species and ecosystems that
exist along a pronounced humidity gradient.
Among the 34 biodiversity hotspots of the
world, four are located in the Himalayas.
The vegetation varies from tropical evergreen
forest to semi-desert and thorn stepee. Of
the 20,000 species of plants found in Hindu
On the other hand the Himalayan eco
system is vulnerable and susceptible to the
impacts and consequences of a) changes
on account of natural causes, b) climate
Population-Density-In-The-Hindu-Kush-Himalaya-Region
http://easytimegallery.com/h/hindu-kush-mountain-range-world-map.html
13
Urbanisation Challenges in the Himalayan Region in the context of
Climate Change Adaptation and Disaster Risk Mitigation
Cities-In-The-Hindu-Kush-Himalaya-Region
Source: http://www.grida.no/graphicslib
Salient Demographic Features of the Indian Himalayan States (IHS)
States
Jammu and
Kashmir
Area (KM2)
(% forest area)
2, 22,236
(15.8%)
Himachal
Pradesh
(26.37%)
Uttarakhand
(45.80%)
Sikkim
Arunachal
Pradesh
Manipur
Mizoram
Tripura
Meghalaya
Nagaland
Assam Hills
West
Bengal Hill
55,671
53,483
7,096
(47.34%)
83,743
(80.54%)
22,327
(76.54%)
21,081
(90.68%)
10,846
(76.04%)
22,429
(77.02%)
16,579
(80.33%)
15322
(68.0%)
3149
(75.52%)
Population
(million)
Density | KM2
(2011)
Population Density (per KM2 )
Excluding area >4000m)
Sex ratio
(2011)
Literacy rate*
(2011)
12.54
124 (as per
census area)
155 (as per total area)
862
68.74 T
78.26 M | 58.01 F
6.86
123
198
972
83.78 T
90.83 M | 76.60 F
10.09
189
238
963
79.63 T
88.33 M | 70.70 F
0.61
86
192
890
82.20 T
87.29 M | 76.43 F
1.38
17
18
938
66.95 T
73.69 M | 59.57 F
2.86
122
same
992
79.85 T
86.49 M | 73.17 F
1.10
52
same
976
91.58 T
93.72 M | 89.45 F
3.67
350
same
960
87.75 T
92.18 M | 83.15 F
2.97
132
same
989
77.48 T
77.17 M | 73.78 F
1.98
119
same
931
80.11 T
83.29 M | 76.69 F
2.69
91
same
970
1.85
586
same
944
Source: Census of India 2011
*T- total literacy; M- male literacy; F- female literacy;
14
The Himalayas
An Overview
INDIAN HIMALAYAN REGION : RURAL URBAN SPLIT
Population
Rural
Urban
Rural
(%)
Urban (%)
Growth
(2001-2011)
Rural
(2001-2011)
Urban
(2001-2011)
INDIA
J&K
12,541,302
9,108,060
3,433,242
72.62%
27.38%
23.64%
19.42%
36.42%
Uttarakhand
10,086,292
7,036,954
3,049,338
69.77%
30.23%
18.81%
11.52%
39.94%
Himachal Pradesh
6,864,602
6,176,050
688,552
89.97%
10.03%
12.94%
12.65%
15.61%
Tripura
3,673,917
2,712,464
961,453
73.83%
26.17%
14.84%
2.22%
76.17%
Meghalaya
2,966,889
2,371,439
595,450
79.93%
20.07%
27.95%
27.17%
31.12%
Manipur
2,570,390
1,736,236
834,154
67.55%
32.45%
12.05%
1.07%
44.83%
Nagaland
1,978,502
1,407,536
570,966
71.14%
28.86%
-0.58%
-14.55%
66.57%
Arunchal Pradesh
1,383,727
1,066,358
317,369
77.06%
22.94%
26.03%
22.56%
39.27%
Mizoram
1,097,206
525,435
571,771
47.89%
52.11%
23.48%
17.40%
29.65%
Sikkim
610,577
456,999
153,578
74.85%
25.15%
12.89%
-4.99%
156.52%
Darjeeling
1,886,823
1,118,860
727,963
60.58%
39.42%
14.77%
??
??
Dima Hasao
214,102
151,613
62,489
70.81%
29.19%
13.84%
??
??
Karbi Anglong
956,313
843,347
112,966
88.19%
11.81%
17.58%
??
??
Total IHS
46,830,642
34,711,351
12,079,291
74.12%
25.79%
??
??
??
672,425
438,871
196,111
69.10%
30.90%
??
??
??
4,523,820
82.92%
17.07%
??
??
??
xx
xx
xx
xx
xx
xx
BHUTAN (2005
Census)
NEPAL (2011Census)
Total IHR
26,494,504 21,970,684
73997571
xx
Source: Census of India 2011
change resulting from anthropogenic
emissions
and
c)
developmental
paradigms of
the modern society.
THE INDIAN HIMALAYAN REGION
Covering an area of about 5 lakh KM2
(about 16.2% of India’s total geographical
area), the Indian Himalayan Region (IHR)
straddles 10 states of India collectively
referred to as Indian Himalayan States or
IHS. These states are Jammu & Kashmir,
Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Sikkim,
Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya, Nagaland,
Manipur, Mizoram, Tripura, and hill
districts of Assam (Dima Hasao and Karbi
Anglong) and West Bengal (Darjeeling).
For the purpose of an intellectual enquiry,
it is futile to delink Nepal and Bhutan
from the construct of “Indian” Himalayan
15
Region, regardless of the universally agreed
and respected political boundaries. In this
document, the term IHR includes portions
of Himalayas in Nepal and Bhutan.
Starting from foot-hills in the south
(Shivaliks) the region extends to Tibetan
plateau in the north (trans-Himalaya). Three
of the world’s greatest rivers critical to the
Indian sub continent (Indus, Brahmaputra
and the Ganga) originate in the Himalayas
and drain into the Indian Ocean supporting
livelihoods of 600 million people in their
combined drainage basin. Waters from
these rivers have allowed the evolution of
human civilization in this part of the world
as manifested in the form of the Indus
Valley Civilisation. The Himalayan rivers
are endowed with tremendous potential
for hydroelectric generation, a significant
Urbanisation Challenges in the Himalayan Region in the context of
Climate Change Adaptation and Disaster Risk Mitigation
Poverty levels in the Indian Himalayan State (2009-10)
as per Tendulkar Methodology
Tendulkar Committee
States
Rural
Urban
Total
Nagaland
19.30
25.00
20.90
Mizoram
31.10
11.50
21.10
8.1
12.80
9.4
Meghalaya
15.30
24.10
17.10
Arunachal Pradesh
26.20
24.90
25.90
Sikkim
15.50
5.0
13.10
Tripura
19.80
10.00
17.40
Himachal Pradesh
9.10
12.6
9.5
Uttarakhand
14.90
25.20
18.00
Jammu & Kashmir
West Bengal Himalayas
Manipur
-
-
-
47.40
48.40
47.10
Source: Mukherji, GB. 2010. Report of the Task force. Planning Commission, Government of India, New Delhi
proportion of which is yet to be harnessed.
The region is rich in cultural diversity
and languages; the three principal
religions, namely Hinduism, Buddhism
and Islam find full expression along the
Himalayan arc. Multi ethnic composition
is one of the striking features of the
region. More than 170 of about 700
scheduled tribes of India inhabit the IHS.
IHS: DEMOGRAPHIC PROFILE
Though IHR represents one of the major
wilderness areas of the world, anthropogenic
STATE/COUNTRY
Tourist Arrivals (TA)
pressure has been on the increase in recent
years, not helped at all by the influence
and pressure of densely populated adjacent
Indo-Gangetic plains. The total population
of the Indian Himalayan States (IHS) and
two Assam and one West Bengal districts
(Darjeeling) is 46.79 million (Census 2011).
Thus, ~4% of India’s total population lives
in the Indian Himalayan States, which
account for 16.2% of India’s geographical
area (533,604/3,287,263 KM2). Population
is sparse, with density ranging from 17
persons/KM2 in Arunachal Pradesh to
350 persons/KM2 in Tripura. The average
Resident Population
(RP)
TA as % of RP
Source
Jammu & Kashmir
100.21
124.54
80.46
ILFS
Himachal Pradesh
126.60
68.64
184.44
ILFS
Uttarakhand
303.33
100.86
300.74
ORG MARG
Nepal
8.04*
264.94
3.03
Govt. of Nepal
Bhutan
1.16**
6.72
17.26
Govt. of Bhutan
Sikkim
7.20
6.10
118.03
Arunachal Pradesh
1.43
13.83
10.34
Nagaland
0.22
19.78
1.11
Manipur
1.28
25.70
4.98
Rizal & Asokan, IOSR
Journal of Business
and Management,
Volume 12/4, July,
2013
Tripura
3.59
36.73
9.77
Mizoram
0.58
10.97
5.29
Meghalaya
6.57
29.66
22.15
Note: Population Figures for Indian States from Census of India 2011 | **Census Population of Bhutan 2005 | *Census of Nepal 2011
16
The Himalayas
An Overview
GSDP and Per Capita Income in The Indian Himalayan States
Population 2011
(in millions)
GSDP
million Rs./constant prices/(201112)
Jammu & Kashmir
12.55
41,3670
28932
27.21
Himachal Pradesh
6.85
42,0320
49817
10.04
Uttarakhand
10.12
55,6060
47831
30.55
Sikkim
0.607
36420
47655
24.97
22.67
State
Per capita income
(Rs.)
at constant price,
2011-12
% urban
population
Arunachal Pradesh
1.383
58990
38130
Nagaland
1.981
89290
415222
28.97
Manipur
2.721
76320
24327
30.21
51.51
Mizoram
1.091
45570
36732
Tripura
3.671
154630
40411
26.18
Meghalaya
2.964
117600
38944
20.08
39410
27.24
1210.193
52220270
38005
31.16
Average IHS
India
population density across the 10 Indian
Himalayan States is 124.6 KM2, nearly
one-third of the country’s density, 382/
KM2. However if only altitudinal range
where humans can normally live were
to be considered, the density is clearly
higher. From this criterion, as an example,
the density of Uttarakhand comes to
about 234/KM2, instead of 189/KM2.
In most Indian Himalayan States both birth
and death rate are lower in urban than rural
populations, the difference being sharp in
Meghalaya and Mizoram and negligible
in Nagaland and Sikkim. Both birth and
death rates in IHS are generally lower than
that of the country. Literacy rate in IHS is
higher than the national average (74.09%),
except in Jammu & Kashmir (68.74%) and
Arunachal Pradesh (66.95%). The difference
in male and female literacy rates at the
national level is 16.7%, while in several
Eastern Himalayan states it is less than 10%
(Meghalaya 3.4%, Mizoram 4.3%, Nagaland
6.61% and Tripura 9.0%). The matriarchal
nature in some of the tribes of these states
has played a role in this healthy gender ratio.
Jammu & Kashmir with difference of over
17
20% reports the widest gap in the literacy
rates of male and female populations.
Tourism has had a huge impact on
demography of western himalayan states
of India. Good connectivity with the
densely populated northern Indian plains,
Colonial hill stations that have become
full fledged cities and ‘relatively’ better
developed tourism infrastructure play an
important role. Seasonal and sharp swells
in population due to tourist influx has a
profound impact on management, and
logistical supply chain w.r.t urban areas.
IHS: ECONOMIC PROFILE
With the exception of Jammu & Kashmir
and Manipur where per capita state
GDP (at constant price) is below all
India average, the Indian Himalayan
States have per capita state GDP values
either close to the national average (e.g.
Meghalaya), or clearly higher than the
national average (in Sikkim, Himachal
Pradesh, Nagaland and Uttarakhand).
The average percentage of population
below poverty line in the IHS (19.95%) is
Urbanisation Challenges in the Himalayan Region in the context of
Climate Change Adaptation and Disaster Risk Mitigation
significantly lower than all India average
(29.80%). In this regard performance
of a majority of IHS is better than even
the celebrated states like Gujarat and
Maharashtra. The rural and urban divide in
poverty varies across the IHS. In Arunachal
and Manipur both rural and urban poverty
values are high and similar. Contrary
to the general observations, poverty is
higher in urban areas than rural areas in
Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir,
Meghalaya, Nagaland and Uttarakhand.
The average per capita income across the
Indian Himalayan States (Rs. 39,410) is
marginally above the national average (Rs.
38,005), while the percentage of urban
population is lower than the national
average (27.24% compared to 31.6% for all
India). Across the Indian Himalayan States,
per capita income is clearly higher than
the national average in Himachal Pradesh,
Uttarakhand and Sikkim. Among these states
of relatively high per capita income, urban
population accounts for 10.04%, 30.55 % and
24.97% of the total population respectively.
Evidently, the effect of urbanization is
not uniform on per capita income, though
the positive effect of urban facilities on
certain demographic features is obvious.
The existence of urban pockets of poverty
in many Himalayan states would need to be
considered while addressing the challenges
of climate change. Nearly half of the urban
population in Manipur is below the poverty
line and urban poverty is substantial also
in Uttarakhand, Nagaland, Meghalaya
and Arunachal Pradesh. In contrast,
urban poverty is distinctly lower than rural
poverty in Mizoram, Sikkim and Tripura.
18
Urbanisation in the Indian
Himalayan Region
Trends and Characteristics
T
he pace of India’s urbanisation
has been slow by international
standards. According to Census
and United Nations data, India’s share
of urban population in 2011 was 31 per
cent, compared to around 50 per cent in
China, Indonesia and Nigeria, 61 per cent
in South Africa, 78 per cent in Mexico, and
87 per cent in Brazil. In the past 60 years
(1950-2011) India’s urban population share
rose from 17 per cent to 31 per cent, while
China’s quadrupled from 12 per cent to 49
per cent. Nevertheless, the number of people
involved is large: In the 20 years from 1991
to 2011, India’s urban population rose to
377 million - 160 million more than in 1991
and 90 million more than in 2001. By 2031
the urban population is projected to increase
by more than 200 million to 600 million,
or 40 per cent of the national population.
For the first time
since Independence,
the decadal increase
in the size of the
urban population (by
90.99 million people
over 2001-11) was
greater than that of
the rural population
(by 90.47 million).
with 25% of urban India living in slums.
The increase in urban population is an
outcome of three distinct factors: a natural
increase in population within urban areas,
migration of people from rural to urban
areas, and reclassification of settlements
from rural to urban. All three factors have
been at work over the past decade. This is
also the predominant trend in the IHR.
Total population of the Indian Himalayan
States (including 2 hill districts of Assam
and 1 of West Bengal) is 46.33 million.
Taking into account Bhutan and Nepal,
this figure swells to 73.99 million.
The share of urban population in IHS rose to
26 per cent in 2011, from 21 per cent in 2001.
Though this increase is considerably less
than the national figure of 31%, it is notable
that the urban population in the Himalayan
Trend of Urban Population Growth in India
Despite
India’s
relatively low level and
pace of urbanisation,
the condition of urban
communities is woeful
Source: World Urbanization Prospects, 2007. United Nations
19
Urbanisation Challenges in the Himalayan Region in the context of
Climate Change Adaptation and Disaster Risk Mitigation
Population Growth Indices in Selected Himalayan States
States
Birth rate
Death rate
Net growth rate
Rural
Urban
Total
Rural
Urban
Total
Rural
Urban
Himachal Pradesh
17.5
11.5
16.9
7.2
4.2
6.9
1.03
0.73
Total
1.0
Uttarakhand
20.2
16.2
19.3
6.7
5.1
6.3
1.35
1.11
1.3
Meghalaya
26.6
14.8
24.5
8.4
5.6
7.9
1.82
0.92
1.66
Mizoram
21.1
17.0
17.1
5.4
3.7
4.5
1.57
0.93
1.25
Nagaland
17.0
16.0
16.8
3.7
3.3
3.6
1.33
1.27
1.32
Sikkim
18.1
16.1
17.8
5.9
3.8
5.6
1.23
1.23
1.23
1.08
0.58
0.99
Tripura
15.6
11.5
14.9
4.8
5.7
5.0
Jammu & Kasmir
12.5
18.0
17.8
5.7
4.7
5.5
Manipur
14.4
4.1
20.6
7.43
Arunachal Pradesh
India
Source: Census of India, 2011
states grew at not less than 40 per cent, much
more than the meager 12 per cent growth of
their rural population, and certainly faster
than the growth in the all-India picture.
Like rest of the country, holistic and future
oriented urban planning has not really been
an over-riding priority for governments
in the Indian Himalayan Region.
Mushrooming growth of tiny towns perched
here and there is a characteristic feature
of present day Indian Himalayan States.
The India census recognizes six classes
of cities and towns. Class I towns have a
population of more than 100,000; Class II
towns have a population ranging between
50,000 and 99,999. Class III towns have a
range of population range from 20,000 to
49,000; Class IV towns from 10,000 to 19,999
and Class V towns from 5,000 to 9,999. Class
VI towns have a population of less than 5,000.
Of the six population size classes, the
three smaller classes (classes with <20,000
population per city) account for 78.5% of
320 cities and towns of 10 Himalayan States
of India. Only 11 (it is 12 when Darjeeling is
also included) cities have more people than
0.1 million. In Sikkim, the smallest state, the
two largest classes are not present and the
Urban Settlements in Indian Himalayan States
Size Class Frequency
320 cities/towns
40.00
Percentage
93
30.00
77
46
20.00
10.00
0.00
81
11
12
I
II
III
IV
VI
VI
Source: Census of India, 2011
20
Urbanisation in the Indian Himalayan Region
Trends and Characteristics
smallest category (VI) accounted for 66.6%
of cities and towns. Because of the presence
of a sizeable area in the submontane belt,
Uttarakhand has four cities with over
0.1 million population. In contrast, the
adjacent state Himachal Pradesh with
similar total population, has only one city
of the top two large size classes, and the
number of towns and cities increases with
decreasing size class from III to VI. Jammu
and Kashmir is closer to Uttarakhand in
size distribution of urban units. Nagaland
differs from the rest of the states in having
only three intermediate classes of towns (II,
III and IV) with populations ranging from
of 9999 to 19,999 per city. In Meghalaya,
the fourth category (10000-19999) alone
accounts for 50% of towns and cities. In 7
out of the 10 states the three smaller classes
accounts for more than 82% of towns and
cities. Only in Nagaland, Meghalaya and
Tripura, are the percentages of the smaller
towns lower (33.3-69.6%). In all of them
the smallest population size class is absent.
Within the mountains, urban out-growth is
a new, but common phenomenon. Because
of the Poor returns of agriculture, the lack
of basic amenities including drinking water,
poor schooling and health facilities migration
from agriculture to towns in search of jobs is
an important factor that has stressed towns
and cities in the Himalayas beyond limits.
Cities have atleast some infrastructure, and
prospects for obtaining services, including
drinking water and this in itself a major draw.
In mountain-centric IHS like Himachal
Pradesh and Sikkim (states where the
capital is in mountains, and infrastructural
differences
between
mountains
and
plains are not sharp), the challenges of
providing services in the face of growing
Urban Setlement Patterns in North-Eastern States
Tripura
(No. of Towns/Cities:23
50.00
9
40.00
6
30.00
20.00
10.00
1
0
0.00
0.00
I
III
II
IV
Arunachal Pradesh
50.00
VI
40.00
20.00
0
0
I
II
Jammu & Kashmir
1
1
1
III
IV
VI
VI
(No. of Towns/Cities: 69)
40.00
7
6
Percentage
Percentage
6
60.00
0.00
VI
(No. of Towns/Cities: 17)
40.00
30.00
3
20.00
10.00
(No. of Towns/Cities: 69)
80.00
7
Percentage
Percentage
Sikkim
1
0
0
0.00
30.00
20.00
10.00
0.00
I
II
III
IV
VI
VI
I
21
II
III
IV
VI
VI
Urbanisation Challenges in the Himalayan Region in the context of
Climate Change Adaptation and Disaster Risk Mitigation
Himachal Pradesh
26
40.00
16
30.00
20.00
7
6
10.00
1
0
I
II
III
IV
VI
VI
5
Percentage
Percentage
2
1
1
10.00
0
0.00
12
40.00
8
30.00
20.00
4
10.00
1
II
III
IV
Mizoram
VI
VI
I
(No. of Towns/Cities :22)
5
20.00
1
0.00
2
0
II
change
III
could
IV
be
VI
VI
daunting.
IMPACT OF TOURISM
A significant extent of urbanisation in the
IHR can be attributed to the tourism sector
that is the main stay of the economy of
hill states. Tourist arrivals, as a % age of
resident population, are in high in 300% in
uttarakhand, 185% in Himachal Pradesh,
118% in Sikkim and 80% in the J & K. The
main pressure of tourism influx in borne
by cities and towns. In addition expansion
of cities and town to accommodate the
tourists tourism, also triggers migration of
population from surrounding rural areas
IV
VI
VI
4
40.00
3
30.00
2
20.00
10.00
0.00
I
III
(No. of Towns/Cities: 9)
50.00
6
Percentage
30.00
II
Nagaland
8
40.00
4
0
0.00
I
Percentage
No. of Towns/Cities - 29
50.00
40.00
climate
4
Manipur
50.00
10.00
4
10.00
25
13
Fig. 9b. Frequency of different size class of urban population in Waste Himalayan
(No. of Towns/Cities - 10)
60.00
1
14
20.00
0.00
Meghalaya
20.00
26
30.00
0.00
30.00
(No. of Towns/Cities: 76)
40.00
Percentage
50.00
Percentage
Uttarakhand
(No. of Towns/Cities - 56)
0
I
II
III
IV
0
0
VI
VI
to meet manpower needs of the tourism
industry. It is to be noted that due to climatic
reasons number of tourists is not spread
across the year but largely crammed into
“season” months of April-July and OctoberNovember. Large number and skewed
temporal distribution of tourist arrivals
in himalayan hill station and pilgrimage
centers has its own impact on economic
and urban development patterns as well as
natural resource management in hill areas.
It is often the case that the direct share of
Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) in government
revenue proceeds from tourism industry (vat,
service tax luxury tax) is negligible. This is
22
Urbanisation in the Indian Himalayan Region
Trends and Characteristics
in contrast to the situation where it is ULBs
that have to deal with the requirements
for catering to tourist arrivals created.
The cities of the himalayas are growing and
witnessing the same rot as Indian cities in the
plains, from mountains of trash, untreated
sewage, chronic water shortages unplanned
urban growth and air pollution due to growing
number of vehicles owned ether by local
resident or those brought by/four tourists.
23
Given the ecological and environmental
fragility of mountainous land scape it is even
more important that we plan for urban growth
and its spill over into newer settlements.
However unlike the cities in the plains, cities
in IHR lack the luxury of abundant supply of
land in surrounding regions due to topography
to accommodate fresh influx of migration.
Urbanisation Challenges in the Himalayan Region in the context of
Climate Change Adaptation and Disaster Risk Mitigation
A Comparison of Urban Systems in Himalayas and in Plains
Attribute
Himalayas
Plains
Remarks
Size of Human
Population
Generally < 100,000
Generally > 100,000
In Himalayas only 12 cities have > 100,000
population but mostly in foothills or Dunes
Climatic variations
across cities
Significant – altitude being a
major factor
Similar across cities,
except coastal factor
Variability in across mountain cities would
require different strategies to deal with climate
change
Topography
Highly heterogeneous; slopes
very vulnerable to landslides
and other mass wasting
Stable, plains with
very gentle slopes
Perched on immature topography, most
mountain cities are very vulnerable to
landslides
Incidents of
weather extremes
and other hazards
High
Low
Precipitation is higher in mountains than in
adjacent plans, and might increase further
Impact of disasters
High and quite lasting on
infrastructure and supplies
Relatively low, and
short lived
In mountains repair of damaged landslide sites
is almost round the year.
Energy Demand
Low
High
In the absence of large commercial areas and
mass public transport system, mountain cities
require less energy
Alternative routes
to cities
Limited, absent in several
cities
Multiple access
It is a severe limitation in mountains, as
supplies are difficult to manage after a cut-off
of a life line (road)
Winter fog
Rare
For several weeks
In much of the Northern plains of India fog
disrupts transport systems for several weeks
each year, while mountains are sunny
Tourism
Common to most mountain
cities
Limited to few cities
of cultural and/or
historical significance
Many mountain cities are tourist places and on
route to destinations
Dependence on
external supplies
on day to day
basis
High and from distant places
Low from distant
places
In mountains food, medicines, etc. are transported from far off places
Dependence
on natural
ecosystems
High, particularly on springs
and streams for water;
firewood for cooking used
in many cities; Vegetation
supports bird watching and
other recreational activities.
Limited to the exploitation of ground
water and lifting
water from rivers
In mountains the scope for managing watershed for enhancing ecosystem services is
high; it can be a major adaptation strategy with
regard to climate change
Areas surrounding
urban systems
Largely forested
Largely agricultural
Vegetation within
towns
Natural forest retained in
some, but in others forests
are severely degraded.
ones.
Anthropogenically
transformed, with
nothing of original
vegetation left
In hill station like Nainital and Mussoori even
the remains of old growth forests can be seen,
they store substantial amounts of carbon.
Source: S. P. Singh and Subrat Sharma, 2014
24
Climate Change & Indian
Himalayan Region
Extent and Dimensions
C
limate
change
as
a
global
phenomenon is already impacting
millions of people all over the
world, transforming their lives from a
certainty to an uncertainty one. Changing
landscapes, increasing temperature, rising
sea levels, increased risk of drought, fire
and flash floods, increased disease burden
and economic losses are all indications
of climate change. The hardest hit from
impacts of climate change are the people
living in developing countries, and especially
those in mountainous regions. They are not
only vulnerable but with limited and difficult
accessibility.
There is no ambiguity about the incidence,
effects of, climate change in the Himalayas.
Receding glaciers, erratic and unpredictable
weather conditions, altered rainfall patterns,
and increasing temperatures are impacting
on the people.
With a heterogeneous geography, the
region has great climatic variability and
forms a barrier to atmospheric circulation
for the summer monsoon and winter
westerlies. Being a sensitive hotspot of the
phenomenon of global climate change, these
Temperature and Precipitation Patterns in Selected Himalayan Cities/States
Region/Cities
Dehradun (Uttarakhand) at 670 altitude
(Singh and Chaudhary 2013)
Gangtok (Sikkim)
Trends
From 1967 to 2007 (40 years) annual maximum temperature increased by
0.43oC, annual minimum by 0.380C and annual mean by 0.49oC; within this, (the
temperature rise in later phase (1988-2007, 19 years) was as following: annual
maximum 0.42oC, annual minimum 0.59oC and annual mean 0.54oC.
•
•
Manipur
•
•
•
Arunachal Pradesh
Between 1957 and 2009 (52 years) minimum temperature increased by
2.5oC, roughly at the rate of 0.5oC per decade; winters shortened from 6
months to 3-4 months (?)
Decrease in rain fall period from 9 months to 5-7 month, but increase
in intensity.
More frequent fires because of long and intense droughts.
Between 1954 and 20011 (57 years) maximum temperature increased
by 0.8oC (form 26.5oC to 27.3oC) and the minimum by 1.5oC (from
13.8oC to 15.3oC)
Precipitation increased in some towns and decreased in others.
For entire Brahmaputra basin annual precipitation is predicted to increase by
2.3% by 2030s, but for the Brahmaputra basin within Arunachal Pradesh, 5-15%
decreases are predicted by mid-century (2050s)
Western Himalayan (Bhutiyani et al. 2009)
Shimla (2201m) From 1866-2006
Significant increases in mean annual, winter and summer temperatures.
Srinagar (1587m) From 1901-1981
Leh (3504m) From 1901-1989
Source: State Action Plans on Climate Change/Misc.
25
Urbanisation Challenges in the Himalayan Region in the context of
Climate Change Adaptation and Disaster Risk Mitigation
Major Rivers of IHR: Impact of Climate Change on River Plow
River (basin
area, KM2)
Glacial melt
in river flow
(%)
Signal of trends
Probable future
References
Wetter in past half century;
increasing river flow in some
tributaries; 9 tributaries
dried up
Sharp drop in runoff in glacier
retreated catchment, floods occur
owing to extreme rainfall
Chen et al. 2006
Tarim
(1,152,448)
40.2
Amu Darya
(534,739)
10–20
Increase in precipitation
but drop in annual runoff
by 2100, probability of river runoff
increase of 83–87% owing to
mainly an increase in precipitation
Aizen et al. 1997,
2007
Indus
(1,081,718)
44.8
Significant increase in
rainfall (19%); increase
in river flow between 14
and 90%
Flow from glacial sub-basin
peaks at about 150% of initial
flow around 2060; 4% less annual
mean flow
Rees & Collins 2006;
Singh et al. 2008
Ganges
(1,016,124)
9.1
Slight increase in rainfall
and heavy rain; decrease
in rainy days per 100
years
Flow from glacial sub-basin peaks
at about 170% of initial flow
around 2070; 18% less annual
mean flow
Rees & Collins 2006;
Singh et al. 2008
Brahmaputra
(651,335)
12.3
Increase in runoff (low
flow and high flow);
nonsignificant change in
precipitation but change in
runoff at lower basin
Annual flow in Lhasa River
increases by 11.3% and monthly
maximum flow increases by 45%
in 2050s
Gong 2006; Milliman
et al. 2008
Irrawaddy
(413,710)
small
Unknown
Unknown
not available
Salween
(217,914)
8.8
Increase in river flow
during monsoon
River-flow decrease over short
term (2010–2039) and increase
over long term (2070–2099)
Ma et al. 2009
Mekong
(805,604)
6.6
Increase in precipitation
during early monsoon;
increase in runoff
Rainfall and extreme floods increase
Costa-Cabral et al.
2008; Nijssen et
al.2001
Yangtze
(1,722,193)
18.5
Increase in precipitation,
extreme rainfall and
frequent floods; no
significant change in
runoff
Glacier areas in upper Yantze
decrease by 11.6% and glacial
discharge runoff increases 28.5%
by 2050
Su et al. 2005; Wang
et al. 2005; Zhang
et al. 2006
Yellow (944,970)
1.3
No significant change
in precipitation, but
significant decrease in
runoff
Rainfall and evapotranspiration
increase; river flow decreases
Xu 2005; Milliman et
al. 2008; Nijssen et
al. 2001
17.4 (average)
Source: S. P. Singh and Subrat Sharma, 2014
impacts manifest at a particularly rapid rate.
It is predicted that coming years will see
significant stress on food, water and energy
security, as well as biodiversity and species
loss.
As a response to climate change, ice cover is
decreasing in the Indian Himalayan Region,
as for most glaciers in the world. The rate
of retreat has increased in recent years. It is
estimated that Himalayan glaciers have lost
about 174 gigatonnes of water between 2003
and 2009 contributing to catastrophic floods
of the Indus, Ganges and Brahmaputra
rivers. Pollution is accelerating the melt.
An ‘Asian brown cloud’, formed from the
2- million tons of soot and dark particles
released into the atmosphere every year,
mostly from India and China, warms the air
and surface ice. (Leghari, Nature, 2013).
Processes
26
determining
the
conversion
Climate Change & Indian Himalayan Region
Extent and Dimensions
Photo Courtesy: http://samvada.org/2013/news/50
than the increase in the day time
temperature.
of glaciers, ice and snow into run off and
downstream flow are complex, but the
impact of climate change on river regimes is
expected to be profound.
•
Precipitation trends are uncertain and
more region-specific. The observed data
of last three-to-four decades, however,
indicates decrease in precipitation in
much of the Himalayas.
•
Extreme climate events seem to have
increased with time, though data is
scarce.
The generally accepted features of global
climate change in the Himalayas (Shrestha
et al. 2012, Singh et al. 2011) are as follows:
•
The rate of temperature rise in the
Himalayas is more than the global mean
(at places more than three times) and
that predicted for the region.
•
The temperature rise is more during
winters than other seasons. The increase
in the night time temperature is greater
Some data analyses are available for changes
in climate of cities in the Indian Himalayas.
A trend analysis of temperature change
from 1876 to 2006 in cities of the western
Glacier studies in Hindu Kush-Himalayas by outcome, method, region and
confidence level
Total Studies
75
Studies showing glacier shrinkage
63 (All in Himalayan region)
Studies showing glacier growth
12 (All in Karakoram region)
Mass balance studies
11 (All in Himalayan region)
Volume measurement
6 (All in Himalayan region)
Area measurement
14 (All in Himalayan region)
Terminus measurement
44 (12 of Karakoram region, 32 of Himalayan region)
Studies of high confidence level
6 (All in Himalayas, showing shrinkage)
Source: Miller et.. al. (2011)
27
Urbanisation Challenges in the Himalayan Region in the context of
Climate Change Adaptation and Disaster Risk Mitigation
Precipitation Trends in Some Western Himalayan cities
Precipitation
Urban Centers
Annual
Winter
Monsoon
-*
Shimla
-*
-
Srinagar
+
+
-
Leh
-
-
-
Other cities
-*
+
significant at 95% confidence level
-*
(from Bhutiyani et al. 2009)
Himalayas (Shimla, Srinagar, Leh, etc.)
indicates a significant rise in temperature
both in seasonal and annual values: 0.06oC
per decade for monsoon period, 0.14oC per
decade for winter season and 0.11oC per
decade annually (Bhutiyani et al. 2009).
Because of delay in the onset of winter and
the early onset of spring the duration of the
winter season has shortened by about two
weeks over last three decades. Related to this
is the decrease and delay in snowfall. During
this period both monsoon and annual
precipitation have declined, and winter
precipitation due to westerlies has increased,
but insignificantly.
Temperature increases far above 2oC, the
accepted manageable limit, in many parts
of the Himalayas and the Tibetan plateau
indicate that situations can be catastrophic
in the region.
Though controversies with regard to the rate
of change in glaciers still persist, the overall
trend based on data of a relatively higher
confidence level is that the Himalayan
glaciers are generally losing ice rapidly,
except in the region of Karakoram where
glaciers seem to increase in size. Though
the quality of data for Karakoram glaciers is
rather low, increase in the glaciers is possible
as they are fed by westerlies, which have
Ozone Concentration (O3 ) recorded at various observation sites in India
Location
Alt. (m)
O3 (ppbv)
Mohal
1154
9.4-32.0
Mohal-Kullu
1154
30.0±6.2 - 55.9± 9.3
Mt. Abu
1220
Nainital
NOx (ppbv)
Period of Study
References
May and June 1998-2002
Kuniyal et al., 2007
-
Jan 2010-Dec 2010
Sharma et al., 2013
25-49
0.5-3.0
1993-2000
Naja et al., 2003
1958
25-67
-
Oct 2006 - Dec2008
Kumar et al., 2010
Manali
2050
15.5 - 44.0
May and June 1998-2002
Kuniyal et al., 2007
Darjeeling
2134
18 - 63
Jan-Dec2004
Lal et. al. 2007
Kothi
2530
24.1-32.1
2004
Kuniyal et al., 2007
Pantnagar
231
39.3±18.9 (May)
-
March 2009 - June 2011
Ojha et al., 2012
Delhi
220
5-20
-
Since 1997
Jain et al., 2005
Agra
169
10-75
15-40
Nov 2008 - Oct 2009
Singla et al., 2011
Indo-Gangetic
Plain
-
45-80
6.3 (Max)
2001
Beig and Ali 2006
-
28
Climate Change & Indian Himalayan Region
Extent and Dimensions
increased precipitation in recent decades.
Basin. Regardless of the source, overall
discharge is predicted to increase in all
major river basins. This in turn, is predicted
to increase the frequency of extreme events.
The projected inter-annual variability is a
serious potential cause of food insecurity.
How will ice loss affect river discharges in
the next three to four decades? Consistent
increase in runoff in rivers due to increasing
glacier melt and precipitation until 2050
has been predicted. Glacier melt accounts
for 40.6% of the total run off in the Indus
Basin, but only 11.5% in the Upper Ganga
Basin, owing to its monsoon-dominated
precipitation regime (Lutz et al. 2014). The
contribution of glacier melt to total discharge
in the upper Bramhaputra Basin is only
slightly higher than that of the Upper Ganga
Climate Change & Natural
Disasters
Natural Disasters are of diverse types.
The phenomenon of climate change is
largely asociated (by way of influencing
intensity and/or frequency) a variety of
Black Carbon (BC) Concentration at Selected Locations in India
Location
Observation Period
BC ( µg m-3)
Reference
Mohal-Kullu
2010-12
2.8 ± 1.67 (mean)
4.76± 1.99 (max)
2.27± 1.04 (min)
Present study
Mohal-Kullu
2010
Pune
Jan. - Dec. 2005
Kanpur
Dec. 2004
6.0-20.0
Bangalore
Nov. 2001
4.2
Babu and Moorthy, 2002
Patiala
Oct. 2008-Nov2008
7-18
Sharma et al., 2012
Hanle
Aug.2009 to July 2010
0.077±0.064
Nainital
Nov. 2004 - Dec. 2007
1.34±0.06 Max (spring)
0.53±0.22 Min (rainy)
Dehradun
Jan. to Dec. 2007
Kanpur
Dec., 2004 to April, 2005
1.14-10.2
Sharma et al., 2013
4.1
Safai et al. 2007
Tripathi et al. 2005
Babu et al., 2011
Dumka et al., 2010
4.3±0.62 (annual avg)
Kant et al., 2012
8.5
Nair et al., 2007
Source: S. P. Singh and Subrat Sharma, 2014
Aerosol Optical Depth (AOD) on Land and Glaciers
AOD
Parbati
Glacier
(4500 m)
Beas Glacier (3600
m)
Kothi
(2475 m)
Mohal
(1155 m)
Nainital1
(1958 m)
Pantnagar1
(230 m)
Bareilly1
(180 m)
Kanpur1 (142
m)
0.61
Mean
0.17
0.19
0.20
0.24
0.40
0.64
0.68
Max
0.25
0.20
0.22
0.50
-
-
-
-
Min
0.08
0.16
0.12
0.10
-
-
-
-
29
Urbanisation Challenges in the Himalayan Region in the context of
Climate Change Adaptation and Disaster Risk Mitigation
hydro-meteorological events, and their
consequences, that have a potential to
become “disasters” for human societies and
settlements that interface with them during
their course of play.
MONSOONAL STORMS
Increased severity and frequency of
monsoonal storms and flooding in the
Himalayas, which are expected outcomes
of climate change, may significantly alter
the area’s erosion, river discharge, and
sediment dynamics. Eventually, this may
affect existing hydropower reservoirs, as
well as those planned for construction in the
Himalayas. Part of the generated sediment
may be deposited on agricultural lands or
in irrigation canals and streams, which
will contribute to a deterioration in crop
production and in the quality of agricultural
lands.
CLOUD BURST
The cloud burst is a disastrous weather event
in which, the heavy rainfall occurs over a
localised area at faster rate. The rate of rainfall
may be of the order of 100mm per hour.
Cloud burst in India genrally occur during
monsoon season over the orographically
dominant regions like Himalayan region,
Northeastern states and the Western Ghats.
The associated convective cloud can extend
upto a height of 15 km above the ground.
Generally cloudbursts are associated with
thunderstorms. The air currents rushing
upwards in a rainstorm hold up a large
amount of water.
LANDSLIDES
A landslide is defined as a large mass of rock
and earth that suddenly and quickly moves
down the side of a mountain. Landslides
are a normal phenomenon in the course of
evolution of mountain landscapes. However,
landslides and are, also can triggered by
excessive and continuous rain that surpasses
the normal tolerance limit of sloping
landmass. Climate Change and resultant
extreme weather events involving excessive
precipitation have a significant potential for
aggravating the incidence of landslides in
mountain ecosystems.
GLACIAL LAKE OUTBURST FLOOD
Recent Climate Change Induced Natural in IHR
Year and Type
State
Affected
Town
2010 (August)
Jammu & Kashmir
Leh
255 killed, Several missing. Estimated Damage Rs.
1.33 billion
Uttarakhand
Almora &
Nainital
Loss of property. Road blocked for several days.
Himachal Pradesh
Shimla
Two evacuated houses collapsed in Totu area of Shimla
following heavy rainfall. Mizoram
Aizawl
10 killed, few missing, Injured 16 People.
Uttarakhand
Sriangar &
Several
Thousands died as well as missing. Heavy loss of
Property along the river bank in Srinagar. Heavy loss of
infrastructure.
Jammu & Kashmir
Srinagar &
Jammu
Still nothing is certain. Rescue operations are in place.
Flash Flood after heavy downpour
2010 (September)
Flash Flood
2012 (August)
Heavy rainfall and Landslide
2013 (May)
Impact
Thunderstorm with strong squall
2013 (June)
Flood
2014 (September)
Flood
30
Climate Change & Indian Himalayan Region
Extent and Dimensions
Number and area of different size classes of high altitude lakes in the IHR
Number
2000
120000
Area
100000
80000
1500
60000
1000
40000
500
20000
0
Total Area (sq Km)
Total Number
2500
0
>500 100-500 25-100 10-25 2.25-10 <2.25
ha
Size Class
Source: xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Himalayan Glaciers and one of nature’s
greatest renewable storehouses of fresh water
sustaining and benefiting hundreds of millions
of people downstream. However, thinning and
or retreat of Himalayan glaciers has resulted
in the formation of new glacial lakes and
the enlargement of existing ones due to the
accumulation of meltwater behind loosely
consolidated end moraine dams formed
when the glaciers attained their maxima. It
is estimated that there are over 8,000 glacial
lakes in the Hindu Kush-Himalayan region
with more than 200 of them identified as
potentially dangerous. Impact of Glacial Lake
Outburst Floods (GLOF) often transcend
international boundaries. The water from a
lake in one country threatens the lives and
properties of people in another.
Glacial lakes pose a threat to their downstream
communities, but they are also a potential
source of water storage for sustaining
agriculture and forest-based livelihoods. The
Growing Danger Zones in the Himalayas
Huge Glacial Lake Atop Himlalayas: A Potential Danger
It’s strangely calming to watch the Imja glacier lake grow,
as chunks of ice part from black cliffs and fall into the greygreen lake below. But the lake is a high-altitude disaster in the
making – one of dozens of new danger zones emerging across
the Himalayas because of glacier melt caused by climate
change.
If the lake, situated at 5,100m in Nepal’s Everest region,
breaks through its walls of glacial debris, known as moraine,
it could release a deluge of water, mud and rock up to 60
miles away. This would swamp homes and fields with a layer
of rubble up to 15m thick, leading to the loss of the land for
a generation. But the question is when, rather than if.
When Sir Edmund Hillary made his successful expedition
to the top of Everest in 1953, Imja did not exist. But it
is now the fastest-growing of some 1,600 glacier lakes in
Nepal, stretching down from the glacier for 1.5 miles.
A satellite-based study has indicated that a huge glacial lake
has formed atop the Himalayas in Sikkim with a “very high”
potential for it to burst and create devastation downstream.
Analysis of satellite data has revealed that the lake has
formed at the snout of South Lhonak glacier, that is about
7,000 meters high on the mountain in the northeastern state.
The lake, bounded only by loose soil and debris, could cause
havoc downstream if it ruptures, according to scientists at the
National Remote Sensing Centre (NRSC) in Hyderabad.
In a report published in the latest issue of the journal Current
Science, NRSC researchers Babu Govindha Raj and co-workers
say the glacial lake is about 630 meters wide and 20 meters deep.
It covers an area of 98.7 hectares and contains 19.7 billion
liters of water. A sudden outburst “can create devastating
floods downstream,” they warn, adding that the probability
of this happening “is very high”
The Guardian | 11 October 2011
NDTV | Indo-Asian News Service, February 11, 2013
31
Urbanisation Challenges in the Himalayan Region in the context of
Climate Change Adaptation and Disaster Risk Mitigation
SOME RECENT GEO-HYDROLOGICAL DISASTERS IN IHR
The occurrence of five major disasters in the
Indian Himalayas during the last four years is
disturbing. While it will be incorrect to link
all disasters with climate change, it is a fact
that in most of them the level of precipitation
was extraordinarily high, and in some cases
the time and place were abnormal.
CLOUD BURST, LEH (2010)
Flash floods and massive landslides, triggered
by a series of cloudbursts, killed 179 people and
injured at least 607 in Leh town and its adjoining villages in the Ladakh division in Jammu
and Kashmir on Thursday 5.08.2010 night.
According to sources, the cloudburst happened
between 12.30 and 1.00 am on Friday the 6th
of August 2010. The telephone network was
completely damaged, besides the runway of
the Leh airport, cutting off the town from the
rest of the country. The district hospital and
two buildings which were housing offices of
the Union Home Ministry were also affected.
Five villages were hit by the sudden downpour and flashfloods including Choglumsar
and Shapoo. Old Leh city, including the main
bus stand was among the worst affected.
and Mandakini Rivers of Uttarakhand.
Landslides and mass destruction of bridges & roads left about 100,000 pilgrims and
tourists trapped in the valleys for days.
More than 4000 people died in these unprecedented extreme weather events despite
an all out search, rescue and relief mission
launched by the entire government machinery as well as civil society organizations.
The impact of the Kedarnath tragedy on
tourism continues. To what extent the tragedy was due to poor governance and lack
of preparedness, remains a moot point.
KEDARNATH 2013
Heavy down pour on 16 - 17 June 2013 in
the Kedarnath valley and surrounding areas
together with the bursting of the Chorabari
(glacial) Lake caused flooding of Saraswati
SRINAGAR FLOODS (2014)
Incessant rains in the upper catchment of
River Jhelum, that snakes its way through
the city of Srinagar, some 60 kilometres after it takes its rise in South Kashmir, caused
worst ever floods in the history of Srinagar.
The state government and the authorities
were caught completely off guard with even
the official agencies, including the local army
garrison, mandated to deal with flood situation finding themselves marooned and helpless in the initial phase of the onslaught.
More than 1000 people died with loss to
private/public property running into thousands of crores. Apart from excessive precipitation, encroachment in the flood plains
and spillways has also been recognised as a
cause for the suffering of the Srinagar city.
challenge is to minimise the risk of outburst
and to reduce the vulnerability of nearby
communities while securing the potential
benefits of the lakes. Scientific information
about existing glacial lakes, enhanced by
monitoring and early warning systems, and
mitigation measures to reduce the impact of
glacial melting is essential. (ICIMOD, 2013).
32
Climate Change Adaptation&Disaster
Risk Reduction in Himalayan Region
Governance and Institutional Framework
C
limate change is a global issue, and
a subject of intense multi/bilateral
negotiations on how to address
the causes and manage its ramifications.
These processes facilitate cooperation that
is so important for individual countries.
On June 30, 2008, Govt. of India unveiled India’s
first National Action Plan on Climate Change
(NAPCC) outlining existing and future policies
and programs addressing climate mitigation
and adaptation. The plan identifies eight core
“national missions” running through 2017.
While international negotiations are important
for evolving a unified global response to
prospects of Climate Change, proactive action
by nation states is an imperative that can not
be escaped. This is especially so for developing
countries, like India, where vulnerability
to Climate Change sits on top of, and is
exacerbated by other vulnerabilities created
by poor access to land, overcrowding and
low-quality housing and a complex set of
social, institutional and economic processes.
These national missions are of
significance to the IHS which
forefront of the effort to adapt
steadily unfolding impact of climate
Managing climate change in urban centres in
the mountains would be far more challenging
and costlier than in plains because of the
prevalence of smaller urban units, scattered
across difficult terrain, varying in altitude
and topographical location. The scarcity of
water and land because of steep and unstable
slopes, and long distances from rail heads,
airports and other transport connections limit
the size of cities and towns in mountains. In
states where plain areas are extensive, such as
Uttarakhand, some cities are growing rapidly.
For example, Dehradun in Uttarakhand
acts as a huge sink for populations living
in the Garhwal region and also the
adjoining plains, resulting in depopulation
at least in some pockets in the highlands.
33
special
are at
to the
change.
NATIONAL MISSIONS
National Mission for Sustaining the
Himalayan Ecosystem: The plan aims
to conserve biodiversity, forest cover, and
other ecological values in the Himalayan
region, where glaciers that are a major
source of India’s water supply are projected
to recede as a result of global warming.
The Government of India has given special
importance to the Himalayan region
by establishing the National Mission
on Sustaining Himalayan Ecosystems
(NMSHE) within its Department of Science
and Technology (DST) to focus on the issues
of climate change in the Himalayas. There
are also other related missions launched
by the Central Government that deal with
urban issues (can we list these missions). In
addition there are several institutions and
independent
bilateral/multilateral/civil
society organizations acting as knowledge
providers, generating and disseminating
information on urban systems. The goal of
Urbanisation Challenges in the Himalayan Region in the context of
Climate Change Adaptation and Disaster Risk Mitigation
State Action Plans on Climate Change prepared by Indian Himalayan
States (Urban Sector)
Sub-Sector (all States, otherwise stated)
Specific Tools/Instruments proposed by certain states only
Legislations/Body/Provisions
Introduction/Enforcement of Building Bye Laws and codes
Climate Cell in Urban Directorate
Introduction of E-Governances
Institutional Mechanism(Geotechnical Laboratory, Panchayati Raj etc))
Official or informal energy building codes
Collaboration with insurance providers
Capacity Building Programme
Municipal officials, Local urban bodies
Involvement of NGO, community, groups and social organizations for inducing
awareness in people.
Urban Floods (Particular mention by Jammu Cleaning of drainage and waterways
& Kashmir, Manipur and Meghalaya)
Removal of encroachment, Strict regulation of urban land use in the valley
Urban embankment, dams and other water structures
Construction storm water drain
Geo-textile fabric tube technology for enduring protection against floods and
erosion
Policy incentive for use of permeable surfaces
Flood forecasting arrangements
Urban Transport
Encouragement use of bicycles and walking for short trips; Pedestrianism
Mass urban transport /Bus Rapid Transit system
C.N.G Buses / Biofuel / Energy Efficient Vehicle
Metro Cable System/Mono Rail/Rope Way
Pay & Use rental 2 & 4 Wheelers for Tourist
Energy labeling with fuel efficiency standards for vehicles
Linking medium & small town throuhj Efficient and convenient public transport
in tourist season
Solar PV or other electric vehicle charging system
Phase-out of older vehicles
Road (Improving traffic conditions, reducing
journey time, and Safety)
Construction of water drain
Pedestrian Path , Subways, Street fixtures
Car Parking Restrictions, Multi-story Car parks, and Bus/Truck Terminals
Road widening
Restoring Green Cover
Avenue Plantations
Green patches & Plantations
Recreational Forsetry
Sewerage & Water discharge
Construction of drain, sewerage line
Solid Waste & Waste Water (Recycling and
Reus
Decentralized waste treatment & disposal
Water Supply
Improved infrastructure, augmentation and efficiency improvements
Manure & Energy Production
Rain Water Harvesting
Cleaning/conservation/beautification of water bodies in urban limits
Constitution of Water Use Societies
Energy
Power from waste & landfills gases
Green Building
Solar Passive Building
Solar Water Heater
Energy efficient devices in Lightening
Switching to alternative energy sources for existing operations
34
Climate Change Adaptation&Disaster Risk Reduction in Himalayan Region
Governance and Institutional Framework
Planning & Management
Urban information system & Mapping
Urban database, monitoring and management
Restricting super markets and malls including vegetable markets to come up
in and around the Core Business District (CBD)
Master Plan / Zone Plan
Green City/Green Building
Incorporation of the Smart Cities Concept
Land Use Assignment Zoning Plan
Microzonation and risk assessment of the landslide affected areas
Pozzolanas in concrete production
Source: xxxxxxxxxxxxx
NMSHE is to link-up the research efforts of
these missions and institutions by identifying
research priorities and coordinating efforts
of various knowledge institutions. DST also
plans to involve other research organizations
and NGOs to achieve the goals of NMSHE.
NGOs could play the role of educating
people and facilitating mitigation and
adaptation activities at local level.
National
Mission
on
Sustainable
Habitat:
To
promote
energy
efficiency as a core component of
urban planning, the plan calls for:
•
Extending
the
existing
Conservation
Building
Energy
Code;
•
A greater emphasis on urban waste
management and recycling, including
power
production
from
waste;
•
Strengthening the enforcement of
automotive fuel economy standards and
using pricing measures to encourage
the purchase of efficient vehicles; and
•
Incentives
for
of
public
the
use
transportation.
National
Mission
on
Strategic
Knowledge for Climate Change: To
gain a better understanding of climate
science, impacts and challenges, the plan
envisions a new Climate Science Research
Fund, improved climate modeling, and
increased international collaboration. It
35
also encourage private sector initiatives
to develop adaptation and mitigation
technologies through venture capital funds.
National Solar Mission: The NAPCC
aims to promote the development and
use of solar energy for power generation
and other uses with the ultimate objective
of making solar competitive with fossilbased energy options. The plan includes:
•
Specific goals for increasing use of solar
thermal technologies in urban areas,
industry, and commercial establishments;
•
A goal of increasing production of
photovoltaics to 1000 MW/year; and
•
A goal of deploying at least 1000 MW
of solar thermal power generation. Other
objectives include the establishment
of a solar research center, increased
international
collaboration
on
technology development, strengthening
of
domestic
manufacturing
capacity, and increased government
funding and international support.
Solar Mission focuses on promoting offgrid systems including hybrid systems to
meet / supplement power, heating and
cooling energy requirements. In Himalayan
(Special Category) the Central Financial
Assistance upto 70% may be provided.
National Mission for Enhanced Energy
Efficiency: Current initiatives are expected
Urbanisation Challenges in the Himalayan Region in the context of
Climate Change Adaptation and Disaster Risk Mitigation
UN-HABITATS
Other Players:
e.g., USAID
Cities and Climate Change Initiative (CCCI)
Enhancement in preparedness and mitigation activities of
cities (Developing and Least Developed Countries.
Tools
•Jawaharlal Nehru National
Urban Renewal Mission
(JnNURM)
•National Mission on
Sustainable Habitat
•National Urban
Livelihoods Mission
•National Mission on
Sustaining Himalayan
Ecosystem
Resources:
Finance, Knowledge, Technical Capability,
Institutional resources, tools
Ministry of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation
Ministry of Science & Technology
Ministry of Environment, Forests & Climate Change
Policies & Programmes
State Action Plan
Resources Mobilization
Prepar edness
National Disaster Management Authority
Acts & Resources
Local Urban Bodies
Citizens
Adaptation
Risk Cover
Capacity Building
Departments: Urban
Development, Transport &
Road, Water & Sanitation
Electricity, Energy, Forest,
Irrigation, etc.
National Urban Housing & Habitat Policy
National Urban Sanitation Policy
Global
Knowledge
•National Institute
of Urban Affairs
•National Institute
National
of Disaster
Management
•School of Urban
Planning &
Architecture
•Central Road
Research Institute
•wadia Institute
of Himalayan
Geology
State
•G. B. Pant Institute
of Himalayan
Environment &
Development
•Universities
Local
•..................
Framework for Climate Change mitigation for Urban Areas of the Himalayan
to yield savings of 10,000 MW by 2012.
Building on the Energy Conservation
Act
2001,
the
plan
recommends:
from 23% to 33% of India’s territory.
•
Mandating specific energy consumption
decreases in large energy-consuming
industries, with a system for companies
to trade energy-savings certificates;
National
Mission
for
Sustainable
Agriculture: The plan aims to support
climate adaptation in agriculture through
the development of
climate-resilient
crops, expansion of weather insurance
mechanisms, and agricultural practices.
•
Energy incentives, including reduced
taxes on energy-efficient appliances; and
OTHER PROGRAMS
•
Financing
for
public-private
partnerships
to
reduce
energy
consumption through demand-side
management programs in the municipal,
buildings and agricultural sectors.
National Water Mission: With water
scarcity projected to worsen as a result of
climate change, the plan sets a goal of a
20% improvement in water use efficiency
through pricing and other measures.
National Mission for a “Green India”:
Goals include the afforestation of 6
million hectares of degraded forest
lands and expanding forest cover
The NAPCC also describes other
ongoing
initiatives,
including:
Power Generation: The government is
mandating the retirement of inefficient
coal-fired power plants and supporting
the
research
and
development
of
IGCC and supercritical technologies.
Renewable Energy: Under the Electricity
Act 2003 and the National Tariff
Policy 2006, the central and the state
electricity regulatory commissions must
purchase a certain percentage of gridbased power from renewable sources.
Energy
36
Efficiency: Under the Energy
Climate Change Adaptation&Disaster Risk Reduction in Himalayan Region
Governance and Institutional Framework
Climate Change
•Warming
•More Extreme Events (heavy precipitation & heat waves, Intensified droughts)
•Shifts in weather timing
•More temperature rise in winter and in night
Other Stresses
•Pollution
•Intensified Consumerism
•In-Migration: Rapid shift
from rural to urban areas
Himalayan Urban System
•Highly vulnerable to disasters, with intense and lasting impacts
•Prone to cut-off in case of natural calamities
•Generally small and congested with high percentages of built up areas within
premises
•Little space, left for walking, which was the sole mode of transport originally
•Tourism an integral part in most cities
•Presence of original forests in hill stations
•Urban ‘out-growths’ in rural areas
•Greater dependence on ecosystem services
•Poor mechanism of waste disposal
Likely Consequences
•Increased Energy Demand (Cooling) an added need & Water needs
•Increased hazards (landslides, floods and related diseases)
•Disruption in Connectivity
•Communication Failure & Chaos
•New Diseases
•Increased Run off & Reduced Infiltration
Likely Adaptations
•Main-streaming of climate change in Governance, Institution and Capacity building
•New Planned cities - A paradigm shift?
•Water Conservation & management - Recycling?
•Construction and maintenance of natural/artificial drainage system
•Hazard area mapping and Zonation, and detailed Disaster Mitigation plan
•Additional/Alternate routes to urban areas
•Cooling devices for houses during summer
•An elaborate warning system in place
climate change issues directly or
indirectly connected to urban
areas including regulation,
urban transport, restoration of
green cover, sewage and waste
treatment, water supply, urban
floods, energy, planning and
capacity building of municipal
officials and other urban bodies.
In their general structure, the
SAPs of Indian Himalayan
States are largely similar.
However,
state-specific
proposals have not been
clearly outlined, except in one
or two areas. For example,
Jammu & Kashmir, Manipur
and Meghalaya have given
importance to managing urban
floods. The SAP of Jammu
and Kashmir has covered
several aspects of urban
floods, indicating that the state
government was aware of the
need for adaptation to deal
with extreme climatic events.
SAPs do not throw much light
on inter-city, and intra-city
variations that charecterise
the IHS. The problems of
the poorest who have the least capacity to
deal with climate change, living in informal
settlements often on land legally not their
own, have also not been adegnately addressed.
Climate Change Framework for Mountain Urban Areas
Conservation Act 2001, large energyconsuming industries are required to
undertake energy audits and an energy labeling
program for appliances has been introduced.
State Climate Change Action Plans
Ministry of Environment, Forest, and
Climate Change (MoEFCC), Govt. of India
is also playing a proactive role in the area
of climate change and discharging principal
role in global and regional climate change
negotiations has encouraged each state to
prepare a State Climate Change Action Plan.
Indian Himalayan States, in their respective
State Action Plans (SAP) have considered many
37
SAPs are weak in social aspects, with
technological aspects dominating the thought
process. For instance walking was initially one
of the most prominent means of mobility in
mountain cities. Walkways have been severely
compromised in recent years because of the
increase in vehicular traffic. This shift, from
‘cities meant for walking’ to ‘cities meant for
heavy vehicular traffic’ on congested roads has
Urbanisation Challenges in the Himalayan Region in the context of
Climate Change Adaptation and Disaster Risk Mitigation
been far more rapid and chaotic in IHS than it
has been in the urban areas in plains. The action
plans of some states have referred to the provision
of walking lanes. However, they hardly address
the ways and means to create such walking
lanes in land-scarce mountain cities. In many
cities roads are so congested that safe walking
passage is only possible through a vertical
separation of pedestrians from cars and motors.
The SAPs do not address the present state
of municipalities and other local bodies.
Generally, these bodies are financially weak
and depend considerably on state government
grants for making ends meet. Many important
urban services, such as power and water
supplies are beyond their control. The state
officers in municipalities do not have a cadre;
individuals serving in municipalities cannot
make a career based on the basis of experience
and performance in urban management.
Elected bodies have lost capacity to manage
urban systems since over a long time they
have been depending on the state governments
for funding and expertise. The systems
and functioning of municipalities are far
removed from those required to deal with
the problems of climate change. In many
places they have deteriorated over the years.
From the SAPs, one gets the impression that
they were prepared in response to a request
from DST, rather than proactively. They
have not dwelled on how funds would be
raised, and efforts that would be required to
achieve goals, given the limited capacity of
local bodies. The gap between the existing
state of affairs in municipalities and the
proposals listed in state action plans clearly
shows that states do not have capacity, as yet
to take up the proposed activities effectively.
A review of mitigation and adaptation strategies
of cities reveals that climate change is in many
cases either absent, or insufficiently linked,
to the discourse on overall sustainable urban
development. Climate change adaptation
strategies in many cases create an impression of
being detached from other on-going discourses,
or even outside the institutional entities usually
dealing with issues related to sustainable urban
development. Additionally, it has been found
that the Disaster Risk Mitigation and Climate
Change Adaptation efforts operate independent
of each other. Synergies between them have not
been well-established, even with their common
goal to reduce the impact of extreme events and
increasing urban resilience. Both these functions
are generally housed in different Departments
or Ministries with fragmented roles and
responsibilities. Also, better land use planning
and improved building code, proposed as key
adaptation measures, do not often sufficiently
match the reality because of existence of informal
social mechanisms of land management in India.
The probability of finding win-win solutions, for
sustainable urbanization, is low, and trade-offs
between conflicting goals are more common.
DISASTER RELIEF RESPONSE APPARATUS:
CURRENT STATUS
At present, National Disaster Response Force
consists of ten battalions, three each from the
BSF and CRPF and two each from CISF and
ITBP. Each battalion has 18 self-contained
specialist search and rescue teams of 45 personnel each including engineers, technicians,
electricians, dog squads and medical/paramedics. The total strength of each battalion
is 1,149. Union cabinet has also approved
the conversion/up-gradation of 02 Bns
from SSB. All the ten battalions have been
equipped and trained to respond natural as
well as man-made disasters. Four battalions
of them are also trained and equipped for response during chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear (CBRN) emergencies. These
NDRF battalions are located at ten different
locations in the country (see map) based on
the vulnerability profile of country and to cut
38
Climate Change Adaptation&Disaster Risk Reduction in Himalayan Region
Governance and Institutional Framework
down the response time for their deployment
at disaster site.
It is indeed surprising that no NDRF battalion is based in any of the states in the IHR
despite the Himalayan belt being once of the
most vulnerable as recent events in J&K, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh and Sikkim
have more than amply indicated. It has been
advocated that each state be mandated to
designate a specified number of battalions of
state police/state armed police as State Disaster Relief Force (SDRF) in order to have one
SDRF self contained team (as is the case with
NDRF) in each district of the state. SDRF
companies so deployed can act as force multipliers for NDRF in case of need by serving
as first responders and also assisting NDRF’s
operations being more familiar with local
conditions.
39
Many states have already begun to take steps
in this direction. Uttarakhand Government
has decided to raise a battalion of the State
Disaster Response Force on the lines of the
National Disaster Response Force. One company each of the SDRF would be stationed
at Rudraprayag, Joshimath, Bageshwar and
Champawat. The personnel would be trained
by the NDRF to act swiftly during natural
calamities like floods, landslides and earthquakes. J&K Government has designated
two Battalions of Auxiliary Police were converted as Jammu & Kashmir State Disaster
Response Force (SDRF).Himachal Pradesh
has decided to have its own State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), to be based at Pandoh
(Mandi) to reduce dependence on NDRF
battalion located in Bathinda.
Urbanisation Challenges in the Himalayan Region in the context of
Climate Change Adaptation and Disaster Risk Mitigation
An Urbanising Indian Himalayan Region
Administrative and Governance Challenges
H
imalayan cities are growing at a rate
much faster than cities in the rest
of the country. Urban population
growth in conjunction with higher incomes
has given an upward push to demand for basic
urban management deliverables like solid
waste disposal, sewage treatment, potable
water, mobility and affordable housing. In
the business as usual scenario and the state
of municipal governance in India, the gap
between requirement and availability of
urban infrastructure can only be expected
to widen with time. Figures specifically for
the Indian Himalayan States are not readily
available. One can consider recent reports
that tell that India spends $17 per capita
per year on urban infrastructure, against a
benchmark requirement of $100. Himalayan
situation is definitely worse than this. This
puts the investment required for building
urban infrastructure in India, over the next 20
years, at US$ 1 trillion.
The general and generic ills that plague
Indian urban sector applies to Indian
Himalayan region in equal potency with
added constraints of limited land and
limited financial and human resources.
Urban development is a field with myriad
dimensions and sub-dimensions.
Immediate priorities that need to be addressed
by way of proactive and focused political
dialogue to find meaningful solutions before
it is too late for these cities to recover from
the clutter and mess that characterizes them
at present are:
INCLUSIVE CITIES
Cities attract migration from surrounding
and even distant regions to fulfill manpower
needs of various sectors of economic and
administrative establishment that emerges.
It is a hard fact that urban planning agencies
more often than not devote their limited
capacities, and resources, to cater to the needs
of upper crust of expanding population with
the poor often getting left out only to inhabit
“informal settlements” or slums. This indeed
is the default pattern of growth of most
Indian cities, including those in the Indian
Himalayan States. The urban poor provide
services and manpower without which a city
cannot function and in order to ensure that
a city acquires its potential it is essential that
its developmental process encompasses the
needs of all, rather than just a few sections of
its population.
It is now understood that density management
regulations only raise the cost of the most
expensive resource, the land. This also results
in urban sprawls raising the cost of delivery
of various services. When it comes to the
Himalayan cities, land is an even more critical
constraint due to topographic constraints
limiting the scope of expanding into the
country side, a luxury normally available to
cities in the plains. Result is ribbon growth
along transportation corridors having the
same impact as the development of an urban
sprawl.
40
An Urbanising Indian Himalayan Region
Administrative and Governance Challenges
Municipal building bye-laws give a fixed
framework to the city planners with very
little leverage for deviations in determining
land use. This only makes the task of
accommodating the poor into the city without
violating legal provisions that much harder
triggering emergence of slums invariably
hinging on a bureaucratic-politician nexus.
Apart from being vulnerable due to illegality
in terms of title to the land, the cost of
services to the poor in informal settlements
is always higher than the same for the well
off in planned areas of the city. The grip of
bureaucratic-political nexus in rather chaotic
Indian cities can be largely traced up to
extremely inflexible building regulations and
byelaws. This scenario, apart from drastically
affecting livability of a city, also seriously
impairs the productivity of a large segment
of urban population reducing the availability
of resources required to improve lives and
enhance output so critically needed by the
urban economy.
URBAN GOVERNANCE
It is estimated that many Indian cities will
be bigger than many individual nation states
by year 2030. Himalayan cities cannot be
expected to stay untouched from this relentless
and unsparing march of urbanization. In fact
they represent the most challenging fringe of
India’s urban situation. This makes a thorough
overhaul of India’s urban governance a
national imperative. Devolution of power
and responsibilities from the states to the local
and metropolitan bodies according to the
74th Amendment still continues to be tardy
due to unwillingness of state governments
to loosen their control over city governance.
India’s current urban governance model is a
legacy not in sync with requirements of an
emerging economic super power. Like in
large cities elsewhere in the world, Indian
cities, including those in the IHR will benefit
from having empowered mayors with long
tenures and clear accountability for the city’s
growth, improvement and performance.
With increasingly larger number of cities
growing or threatening to grow beyond
municipal boundaries, having fully formed
metropolitan authorities with clearly defined
roles will be essential for the successful
FUNCTIONS WHICH MAY BE ENTRUSTED TO URBAN LOCAL BODIES BY THE
STATE GOVERNMENT ON PER THE 12TH SCHEDULE
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Urban planning including town planning.
Regulation of land-use and construction of
buildings.
Planning for economic and social development.
Roads and bridges.
Water supply for domestic, industrial and
commercial purposes.
Public health, sanitation conservancy and
solid waste management.
Fire services.
Urban forestry, protection of the environment and promotion of ecological aspects.
Safeguarding the interests of weaker sections of society, including the handicapped
and mentally retarded.
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
41
Slum improvement and upgradation.
Urban poverty alleviation.
Provision of urban amenities and facilities
such as parks, gardens, playgrounds.
Promotion of cultural, educational and
aesthetic aspects.
Burials and burial grounds; cremations, cremation grounds and electric crematoriums.
Cattle pounds; prevention of cruelty to
animals.
Vital statistics including registration of
births and deaths.
Public amenities including street lighting,
parking lots, bus stops and public conveniences.
Regulation of slaughter houses and tanneries.
Urbanisation Challenges in the Himalayan Region in the context of
Climate Change Adaptation and Disaster Risk Mitigation
management of large cities in India. This is
equally important for Himalayan cities with
comparative scaled population thresholds.
Emergence of clusters like Kullu-Manali,
Nainital-Ranikhet-Almora,
Solan-BarogDharampur, Darjeeling-Kurseong, SrinagarGandebal-Sonamarg and other similar
stretches with near continuous development
along national highways is indicative of the
inability of the urban planning systems to
look and think beyond municipal boundaries
while planning urban development in the
Himalayas.
Although Shimla Municipal Corporation
has
quite
belatedly
prohibited
anyconstruction on slopes steeper than 45
degrees, the damage has already been done.
Asper one estimate, some 90 percent of
central Shimla is built on a 60 degrees slope,
an is covered with buildings which are four
to five storeys high. In the event of an earth
tremor, devastation could be enormous
with buildings on slopes steeper than 45
degrees prone to serious damage. Notably,
Shimla accounts for over 25% of Hinachal
Pradesh’s total urban population. (Teotia).
Situation across other Himalayan cities is
not much different.
LANDUSE PLANNING AND ZONATION
The Himalayan region brings out most
starkly the inter-dependence of man and the
environment. Acute variations in terrain,
gradient and geology makes the role of landuse planning and zonation more critical
than anywhere else as its success or failure
determines the vulnerability of populations
in times of frequent extreme weather events.
However, generally sub-optimal local
administrative set-ups are not really capable
of scientific land-use planning. Even if it
happens somewhere as an exception, the same
is undone by poor enforcement. Haphazardly
developed and built urban habitats in the
mountains not only endanger those who live
in such neighbourhoods, but also degrade the
ambient beauty and charm of an otherwise
picturesque geography. In most instances,
urban administrators do not accord Urban
Planning the centrality and prominence it
must have as a function for developing and
absorbing the long term perspective that is
essential for holistic and futuristic urban
development and management.
CAPACITY BUILDING IN URBAN LOCAL BODIES
Urban development being essentially a multidisciplinary and integrative exercise requires
a real step-up in the capabilities and expertise
of urban local bodies across India. This is
especially true for Himalayan cities that fail
to attract/retain talented human resources
in almost all sectors. Capacity gaps in urban
local bodies as they exist today, unless
addressed, will not allow Himalayan cities to
benefit from devolution of powers as being
argued at various levels and improve service
delivery. Reforms of urban governance will
have to preemptively address the problem of
massive shortage of professionals required for
urban management functions. This mandates
more and increasingly deeper involvement of
private and social sector organizations that
can help meet the capacity gaps, even if only
partially to begin with, while the government
agencies work towards building technical and
managerial depths of city administrations.
In this context, it is necessary to create an
Shortfall in the own revenues of Shimla Municipal Corporation
Particulars
1999-01
(Rs in crores)
1996-97
1997-98
1998-99
Recommended by the FSFC
5.52
6.18
6.92
7.75
2000-01
8.68
Actual Income
4.89
4.77
5.1
6.58
7.39
Shortfall
0.63
1.41
1.82
1.17
1.29
Source: xxxxxxxx
42
An Urbanising Indian Himalayan Region
Administrative and Governance Challenges
charges that reflect costs, debt and publicprivate partnerships (PPPs) and central/state
government funding.
equivalent cadre for cities, or the municipal
cadre, while also pro-actively creating new
avenues to allow for enhanced levels of lateral
entry of talent into city management agencies
from the private-sector as per need.
Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) need to be
facilitated to generate resources to undertake
infrastructure projects. While the mobilisation
through own tax and non-tax revenues by
the ULBs need to be strengthened, as stated
before, there is a need to facilitate mobilisation
of borrowings as well, to bridge the gaps in
the public infrastructure such as water supply,
roads and public transport. ULBs need to be
enabled and helped to raise resources through
banks and other financial institutions as also
by floating municipal bonds. Some of the
State Finance Commissions have made many
useful recommendations for the purpose2.
Smaller ULBs could be facilitated to go in for
pooled financing, as individually they may
not qualify for partaking market borrowings.
Efforts made by the states of Tamil Nadu,
Madhya Pradesh and Odisha in this direction,
needs to be taken note of to devise the way
forward.
FINANCING
For a city administration to be strong enough
to pursue its priorities, it has to have a
significant, even if not total control over the
flow of financial resources needed to perform
its current functions and futuristic planning.
A recent study (2013) by Asian Development
Bank has stated that while the all India
average for own revenues mobilised by the
municipalities (2007-08) was Rs. 757, for
Himachal Pradesh it was Rs. 595 and for
Jammu & Kashmir Rs. 90. While data for
other IHS was not stated, it can be safely
assumed that their performance would be no
better. This makes it necessary that current
dependence of city administrations on the
central and state Governments is reduced
by providing adequate leeway to create
independent sources of revenue for the city
management and development functions.
The options include Monetizing land assets;
higher collection of property taxes, user
This is not to suggest that internal funding
will suffice for cities as this is not the case
anywhere, even in large cities. State and Central
Governments have a critical role in facilitating
Slum Population in Indian Himalayan Region
Number of State/
Union territory#
INDIA
Towns
Type wise Slum Population
Statutory
towns
Slum reported
towns
Total
Population
Notified slums
Recognised
slums
Identified
slums
4041
2,613
6,54,94,604
2,25,35,133
2,01,31,336
2,28,28,135
Jammu & Kashmir
86
40
6,62,062
1,62,909
1,36,649
3,62,504
Himachal Pradesh
56
22
61,312
60,201
0
1,111
Uttarakhand
74
31
4,87,741
1,85,832
52,278
2,49,631
Sikkim
8
7
31,378
31,378
0
0
Arunachal Pradesh
26
5
15,562
0
0
15,562
Nagaland
19
11
82,324
0
48,249
34,075
Manipur
28
0
0
0
0
0
Mizoram
23
1
78,561
0
78,561
0
Tripura
16
15
1,39,780
0
1,24,036
15,744
Meghalaya
10
6
57,418
34,699
8,006
14,713
272
107
1128697
289187
395501
428996
Nepal
Bhutan
Total
Source: Census of India 2011
43
Urbanisation Challenges in the Himalayan Region in the context of
Climate Change Adaptation and Disaster Risk Mitigation
development of cities (for example through
schemes such as JNNURM and Rajiv Awas
Yojana) but eventually city financing model
in India needs to move towards a systematic
formula rather than ad-hoc grants.
CAPACITY BUILDING IN URBAN LOCAL BODIES
Urban development being essentially a multidisciplinary and integrative exercise requires
a real step-up in the capabilities and expertise
of urban local bodies across India. This is
especially true for Himalayan cities that fail
to attract/retain talented human resources
in almost all sectors. Capacity gaps in urban
local bodies as they exist today, unless
addressed, will not allow Himalayan cities to
benefit from devolution of powers as being
argued at various levels and improve service
delivery. Reforms of urban governance will
have to preemptively address the problem of
massive shortage of professionals required for
urban management functions, This mandates
more and increasingly deeper involvement of
private and social sector organizations that
can help meet the capacity gaps, even if only
partially to begin with while the government
agencies work towards building technical and
managerial depths of city administrations.
In this context, it is necessary to create an
equivalent cadre for cities, or the municipal
cadre, while also pro-actively creating new
avenues to allow for lateral entry of talent
from the private-sector as per need.
AFFORDABLE HOUSING
As mentioned earlier urban planning and
development in India has been focused on
the affluent/middle classes leaving out the
poor to fend for themselves in informal illegal
settlements, as if they were never expected to
live in the cities in the first place. The large
proportion of Indian urban population forced
to live in slums is a reflection of this planning
shortfall and lop-sided charter of priorities
so far as urban planning is concerned.
Affordable housing is a critical deliverable
of the day to make cities more equitable
and inclusive through a set of policies and
incentives that bridge the affordability gap
and encourage government housing agencies
as well as private developers to focus on low
income housing and rental housing.
The cities of the Himalayas are growing and
witnessing the same rot as Indian cities in the
plains, from mountains of trash, untreated
sewage, chronic water shortages unplanned
urban growth and air pollution due to growing
number of vehicles. While many aspects of
governance reforms required are valid for the
IHS as much as for any other state, the Himalayan
States require something more, keeping in view
the unique geographical features and habitation
patterns. In the Himalayan region, where
cities vary widely in micro-climate because of
altitudinal and other topographical differences,
a top down approach is unlikely to work. To
deal with global climate change scenario, both
inter-town and intra-town variations must be
captured and local people and local knowledge
incorporated in formulation and execution of
plans aimed at climate change adaptation and
disaster management and response.
It is also important to recognize that cities in the
IHR do not have the luxury of unlimited supply
of land to grow into surrounding regions like
cities and the plains can, and mostly do. Forest
regulations, limited water availability and
topographical barriers also restrict size of cities
in the Himalayas. This makes it imperative
that planners urgently look at possibilities
at new greenfield urban centers to attract a
significant part of the expected future growth in
IHR’s urban population away from its existing
overburdened cities that are indeed bursting at
the seams.
Of the 100 smart cities planned by the Govt. of
India as highlighted in recent pronouncements,
it is perhaps necessary to ensure that IHS gets
to develop a fair share of the same, if not more
than a fair share, given the special and critical
situation that they are in.
44
Way Forward
I
ndian Himalayan Region is under a phase
of rapid transformation of their its natural
landscape and demographic profile due
to economic development and resultant
rural urban migration. Urban expansion has
emerged as a key driver of socio-economic
and environmental change in the Indian
Himalayan region broadly aligned the general
scenario in the Indian subcontinent which is
experiencing rapid urban growth but without
a matching focus of policy makers on
accommodating the migrating millions into
planned urban development and expansion.
Their location abutting glacial melt pathways
or on steep slopes in an even otherwise
ecologically fragile and environmentally
sensitive landscape makes Himalayan cities
particularly susceptible to consequences of
climate change, manifested with increasing
frequency by natural disasters leading to serious
loss of life and property. Events experiences in
Leh(2012), Kedarnath (2013) and Srinagar
(2014) are only high intensity symptoms and
consequences of creeping specter of climate
change that threatens to take Himalayan
cities, quite literally, to the edge of a precipice
if urgent remedial action is not initiated.
For Himalayan cities to secure the future
of their current and future residents and
harvest the full potential of urbanization
for their state, they need to address climate
change adaptation as an issue squarely to
take steps, short term as well as long term,
in a mission mode. Avoidance/mitigation of
climate change induced disasters while also
strengthening capabilities to deal with natural
disasters as and when they happen, as they
will, despite best efforts, is equally important.
Urban development is always a work in
progress. Making Himalayan cities climate
45
resilient and disaster prepared will have to
have a two pronged approach. On one hand
we have to address the excesses of the past,
on the other hand we have to ensure that
future urban expansion complies with urban
planning norms associated with climate
change and disaster management concerns.
While cities are a multi-dimensional
entity and most decisions about any one
part have a cascading and onward impact
on other aspects city ‘s management the
areas that warrant attention from the
perspective climate induced geo-hydrological
setbacks can be clubbed as under:
LANDUSE PLANNING AND BUILDING
REGULATIONS
Climate change has stressed urban
ecosystems by increasing the frequency,
severity and intensity of extreme weather
events. Natural risks of this unplanned and
rapid urban-growth are clearly discernible
in recent natural disasters in Uttarakhand.
Jammu and Kashmir and Nepal with high
casualty and fatality numbers in addition
to serious loss of livelihoods and property.
It is hence critical that climate and disaster
resilience be considered a key deliverable
of local urban development planning.
Availability of satellite imagery based geospatial maps, not only in open market such
as the Google Maps, but also through the
Bhuvan repository developed by the National
Remote Sensing Centre (NRSC) at the behest
of the MoUD under the NationalUrban
Information System Scheme (NUIS) makes
it possible to undertake preparation of the
Land-use Plans much less time and money
consuming, besides brining in greater accuracy
and transparency in the procedure. Such Plans
Urbanisation Challenges in the Himalayan Region in the context of
Climate Change Adaptation and Disaster Risk Mitigation
ought to have sectoral components such as
for drainage, mobility, water supply, solid
waste and sewage management, habitation,
commerce & economic activities, housing etc.
These plans would need to be given a legal
status by notifying under the Town & Country
Planning Act and other relevant State laws.
•
Development of city development plans in
consideration of disaster proneness of landscape to steer future growth away from hazardous, low lying areas.
•
Strict enforcement of zoning regulations and
making zoning violations as non-compoundable, non-bailable offences.
The IHS cities and villages have gradually
started getting besotted with multilevel
buildings with little care for the surrounding
areas. Because of difficult terrain, not many
areas are safe for house construction in our
mountain cities. Houses, are often constructed
on steep and unstable slopes, and in areas
prone to earthquakes, landslides and floods.
For urban planning and management microzoning (identification of areas having different
risk potentials of hazards) and micro-level
planning are the first and important steps in
reducing disaster threats in the mountains.
Micro-zoning based planning (seismic or other
type) has been done for various towns but
zoning regulations are not adequate in the states
and enforcement of law remains in question.
•
Identification of building already existing
on slopes and development of plan to relocate them in a phased manner wherever
unavoidable.
Norms for smart building designs, with features
of physical and environmental sustainability,
need to evolved and propagated. Such buildings
should be disaster-resilient, energy efficient,
rainwater harvesting compliant and accessible
to the physically challenged. The Building Byelaws and the Development Control Regulations
of the Municipalities, Panchayats and the
Planning/Development Authorities need to
be reviewed by a multi-disciplinary team of
experts, to ensure that the Smart Buildings
norms get grounded in the next six months.
Suggested Steps:
•
Development of GIS based maps outlining
hazard zones of various intensity levels.
•
Complete ban on any development in flood
plains of rivers and natural routes taken
by water in case of higher than normal
precipitation.
TRANSPORT
The IHS, like many of the remaining States,
face acute shortage of public transport systems,
leading to growth of private automobiles.
Growing prosperity of country’s population
at large also prompts increasing numbers of
to visit IHS region as tourists. Due to poor air
connectivy, absence of rail links and general
shortage of high quality road transport, most of
the visitors use personal or hired cars for their
visits, contributing to traffic congestion and air
pollution. This is quite evident in the snarls
and traffic congestion that is the hallmark
of mountain towns. Haphazard parking and
resultant overflow pedestrian onto the roads
to further slows down movement of traffic.
It is necessary to address mobility challenges
in Himalayan cities not only for the sake of
reducing emissions but also for restoring the
very livability and long lost quaint appeal of
these cities. An efficient public transport system
comprising of buses, walkways, footpaths
and cable cars is needed for not only easing
the burden of urban commuting but also to
discourage tourist arrivals on private vehicles.
Indeed the cost of providing transportation
infrastructure in mountain cities is much higher
than providing the same in the plains for obvious
reasons. However, given the rapid growth of
urban population in IHS and situation that
already exists these cannot avoided be anymore.
46
Way forward
governance in rapidly urbanizing high
mountains. The administrative arrangements
for various regions of the IHS, including those
mandated under the Disaster Management Act
2005, to prepare effective Disaster Management
Plans would need strengthening through
periodic reviews and monitoring, with a view
to mitigating the adverse impact of disasters.
Suggested Steps:
•
The introduction of public buses in the IHS
Cities under the JNNURM in 2013 has
helped bring about a welcome change in the
situation but more needs to be done to promote bus based public transport systems, for
intra-city and inter-city travel.
•
Cable cars also need to be promoted as a
means of public transport, besides for the
tourists.
•
•
Development of future oriented mobility
plan each city including peri-urban areas to
determine and provide optimal transport
solutions with plans for transit-oriented development of the impact zones. In fact for the
smaller IHS, Mobility Plan may be prepared
for the whole State, to provide sustainable
transport solutions inter- connecting the habitats, as also for intercity movements.
While a District level Coordination Team
headed by the District Collector are
essential, it would be equally necessary to
equip the Municipalities and Panchayats to
imbibe the nuances of disaster prevention
and management in their day-to-day
activities. Awareness and preparedness
campaigns are key components of proactive
approach
on
Disaster
Management.
Unbridled usage of automobiles makes walking an increasingly difficult choice for the
residents as well the visiting tourists. Point
to point surface/elevated walkways integrated with escalators and cable cars on sloppy
terrain are needed to make walking easy and
preferable mode by shortening distances as
well as reduce vehicular load on ciity’s roads
and environment.
•
Develop parking facilities for incoming tourists in peripheral areas, promote park and
ride tourism and ban parking of vehicles on
metaled roads as also suggested by National
Green Tribunal in a recently in the context of
some congested parts of Delhi.
•
Declare city core as no vehicle zone for a
progressively increasing number of days each
week (as in The Mall in Simla).
•
Introducing greater synergy and coordination
among the field agencies and also to deploy
the modern technology based solutions
to prepare for prevention of disasters and
for quick restoration of normal life and
infrastructure post any disaster is an imperative.
In case of any disaster, the local population
is the actual first responder. It will
always take some time for other tiers of
administration to mobilise/launch rescue
efforts. Sensitisation of local people about
the precautions and preventive actions to be
taken in case of any calamity, is of Critical
Significance to ensure that the loss of life and
damage to property is drastically reduced. .
Suggested Steps:
Develop bypasses to divert through traffic to
create more space for pedestrian infrastructure (as done for Kullu in HP).
•
Regulate tourist influx based on carrying
capacity of high footfall spots on pilgrimage
circuits.
•
Charge tourist vehicles entering municipal
limits to recover full cost of municipal
infrastructure and services required in all
tourism towns. This can also be a means
to discourage use of private vehicles by
inbound tourists.
•
Do a comprehensive hazard zone mapping
DISASTER RISK MITIGATION AND RESPONSE
PREPAREDNESS
It is necessary to mainstream disaster resilience
into local urban development planning and
its institutionalization through adaptive
47
Urbanisation Challenges in the Himalayan Region in the context of
Climate Change Adaptation and Disaster Risk Mitigation
of all settlements classified as towns and
above, to guide urban expansion away
from areas prone to be adversely impacted
in case of extreme meteorological and geo
hydrological events.
•
Strictly enforce building activity regulations
in hazard zones identified through scientific
mapping to minimize disaster risk emanating
from climate change induced natural
disasters.
•
Strengthen
technical
infrastructure
monitoring of glacial lakes and river flow
patterns to feed into early warning systems.
•
Create awareness amongst local populations
on appropriate response to disaster situations
and acting in a manner that facilitates the
work of relief agencies.
•
Develop atleast one alternative access land
route to all major urban settlements to
create required levels of redundancy which
is essential for maintaining supply lines and
move equipment and essembial supplies
during times of need.
•
Create staging structures configured to
facilitate airlift/airdrop supplies and humans
by helicopters in areas prone to flooding (a la
Srinagar where sloping roof of all structures
in submerged zone left pilots searching for
that surfaces places to drop supplies as all
buildings have sloping roofs).
•
Create disaster relief stations at intermittent
locations with required earth moving and
other equipment to deliver quick response in
case of landslides.
•
Gear up disaster relief agencies to handle
residents as well as tourists at the same time in
view of the fact that popular hill towns often
have visitors numbers that are a multiple of
their permanent local population.
•
Establish State Disaster Relief Force units in
hazard prone districts to supplement NDRF
and other central agencies in times of need.
ENERGY MIX AND CONSERVATION
Energy use in a typical Himalayan city is
function of economic prosperity, altitude
and population. As mentioned elsewhere,
Himalayan cities witness seasonal surges
in population due to tourism. Himalayas
are well endowed with renewable source of
energy in terms of hydel power potential.
Most of the electricity comsumed in
Himalayan belt inevitably comes from hydel
power plants on various rivers (Jhelum,
Beas, Ganga, Yamuna, Sharada, Teesta,
Brahmaputra, Kosi, Sutlej, Shyok, Suru,
Parbati…….) to name a few. Hydel power
is a major export of hilly states which are
mostly, with the exception of Jammu and
Kashmir, power surplus states. In fact,
power genertion in Himalayan Hydel power
plants help states in plain avoid, to the
extent possible, the polluting thermal energy.
Notwithstanding the fact the full hydel
power potential of Himalayan states there
is significant untapped potential to harness renewable energy (solar, wind, bio and
geo-thermal) sources in the Himalayan belt.
Better utilization of renewable energy sources other than hydel power, will not only supplement hydel power generation but will also
help reduce pressure on fuelwood, the major
cause of forest destruction around urban
centers and along pilgrimage circuit routes.
In an urban context, it is a fact that Himalayan
cities are major centers for fuelwood demand
for heating, and cooking purposes. This has
led to serious degradation of forests in the
periphery of most Himalayan cities, which
not only exacerbates the heat island effect but
also compromises water security by adversely
impacting rivulets and springs that need green
cover to stay in circulation. It will be advisable
to enforce a strict ban on use of fuelwood by
commercial enterprises while ensuring reliable
availability of cleaner fuels like LPG/PNG,
beginning with large cities in order to prioritize.
Incentives to encourage use of Solar Power
are already in place in many states which
need to aggressively promoted in a mission
mode for households/hotels for water heating
48
Way forward
needs. Biomass based fuel briquettes are a
viable substitute for coal, a resource largely
imported from the plains. Research needs to be
amplified to mainstream use of pine needles,
within sustainable limits, in production of fuel
briquettes for use in urban/rural households.
The IHS region abounds in the potential
for harnessing the Non Conventional &
Renewable Energy (NRE) Sources. The fact
of the numerous rivers having origin in the
region coupled with the hugely undulating
terrain through which these rivers flow,
makes it abundantly feasible to of in far
water based NREs. The large availability of
sunlight and winds with good speed for good
part of the year provides ample opportunities
for harnessing solar and wind energy. On
the demand side, the scattered habitation
pattern makes it eminently desirable to
adopt the NRE sources for meeting the
energy needs of the people not only for the
households but also for the micro, small and
the medium economic enterprises including
49
in the manufacturing sector. Combination
of hydel, solar, geothermal and biogas
energy has the potential to make urban
settlements in IHS carbon neutral, if not
carbon negative, in a short span of time.
However, any efforts for exploitation of the
NRE sources in the IHS would need to be
dovetailed with the efforts for preservation
and nurturing of the fragile ecology of
the region. The efforts made in respect
of NRE sources for the IHS thus far have
focused largely on the hydro-electric power
generation, of which many are large projects,
providing power to the consumers outside
the IHS. This has led to the perception
among the local people that they are being
made to make social and environmental
sacrifices, to their long term detriment, only
for the commercial gains of outsiders. The
policies and programs for the NRE sector
should, therefore, aim at meeting such
concerns, while optimally exploiting the
huge benefits that lay untapped for the sector.
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53
Appendix
Table A1. Municipal Corporation (cities with 1 Lakh and above population)
in the Indian Himalayan States.
Sr. No
State & City
Population (2011)
JAMMU AND KASHMIR
1
2
Srinagar
Jammu
1,273,312
951,373
HIMACHAL PRADESH
1
UTTARAKHAND 1
2
3
4
5
6
SIKKIM
1
MANIPUR
1
TRIPURA
1
Shimla
142,161
Dehradun
Haldwani
Hardwar
Roorkee
Kashipur
Rudrapur
447,808
322,140
225,235
220,306
121,610
140,884
Gangtok
98,658
Imphal
250,234
Agartala
450,000
Table A2: Location of city/town & sources of water in few states of the
Indian Himalayan region (source DS Rawat)
Sr. No.
Name
Location
A. Uttarakhand (Kumaun Region)
Source of water
1
Almora
Hill top
Lifted water from river,
springs, ground water
2
Rainkhet
Hill slope
Lifted water from river,
springs
3
Dwarahat
Valley
Stream, springs, ground
water
4
Bageshwar
Valley
River, stream, springs
5
Pithoragarh
Hill slope
Lifted water from river,
springs, ground water
6
Dharchula
Valley
River, stream, springs
7
Berinag
Hill slope
Stream, springs, ground
water
8
Didihat
Hill slope
Stream, springs, ground
water
54
Appendix
9
Gangolihat
Hill slope
Lifted water from river,
stream, springs
10
Munsiyari
Hill slope
Stream, springs
11
Askot
Hill slope
Stream, springs
12
Champawat
Hill slope
Stream, springs, ground water
13
Lohaghat
Hill slope
Stream, springs
14
Nainital
Hill slope
Lake
15
Bhimtal
Hill slope
Springs, stream
16
Bhowali
Hill slope
Stream, springs
17
Mukteshwar
Hill slope
Springs
B. Uttarakhand (Garhwal Region)
18
Gopeshwar
Valley
River, springs
19
Gauchar
Valley
Stream, springs
20
Karnaprayag
Valley
Stream, springs, river
21
Joshimath
Hill slope
Stream, springs
22
Tehri
Hill slope
Lifted water from river, springs
23
Chamba
Hill slope
Stream, springs
24
Narendra Nager
Hill slope
Stream, springs
25
Uttarkashi
Valley
Stream, springs, river
26
Srinagar
Valley
Stream, springs, river
27
Pauri
Hill slope
Stream, springs
28
Devprayag
Valley
Stream, springs, river
29
Chakrata
Hill top
Stream, springs
30
Mussoorie
Hill top & slope
Stream, springs
31
Kotdwar
Foot hill
Stream, ground water
C. North-eastern Region
32
Shillong
Hill slope
Stream, springs
33
Gangtok
Hill top
Stream, springs
34
Itanagar
Stream, springs
D. Himachal Pradesh
35
Kullu
Valley
Stream, springs
36
Shimla
Hill slope
Lifted water from river,
springs
37
Manali
Hill top
Lifted water from river,
springs
38
Mandi
valley
Lifted water from river,
springs, ground water
39
Palampur
Hill slope
Stream, springs, ground
water
40
Sundar Nagar
Valley
River/canal, spring
41
Hamirpur
Hill slope
Stream, springs, ground
water
42
Bilaspur
Valley
River, stream, springs
43
Solan
Hill top
Stream, springs, ground
water
44
Nahan
Hill slope
Stream, springs, ground
water
55
Case Study - 1
Nainital, Uttrakhand
N
ainital is a lake city and famous
tourist destination situated in the
catchment of Naini lake at the
southern extremity of the Lesser Himalayan
ranges in Kumaon division of Uttarakhand
(Figure 1). The catchment is bounded in the
north by the highest peak of the town - Naina
Peak and its extension to Alma Peak and
Sher Ka Danda Peak with progressive decline
almost to the level of the lake (1938 m) near
the eastern end of the lake. On the west the
rugged hill of Deopatha rises to an altitude
of more than 2435 m, while on the south the
watershed is separated by the water divide of
Ayarpatha hills which have the maximum
height of 2274.1 m declining gradually
towards the eastern end of the town. The
eastern boundary of Nainital is formed by
Balia stream which drains the excess water of
lake during monsoon season, and is one of
the important tributaries of Gaula river. The
western end of the valley consists of a series
of gentle undulations formed by the debris
of the surrounding hills, whereas the eastern
fringe is filled by Naini lake which gives
its name to the city. The name ‘Naini’ thus
derived by the ancient temple of that goddess
Naina Devi now located at the north-western
edge of the lake (Joshi et al. 1983).
The town of Nainital is located at 29°24’
North latitude and 79°29’ East longitude and
encompasses a geographical area of 14.32
km2 between 1938 m and 2611 m from the
mean sea level in a east-west running Gagar
Range. Nainital enjoys cold-humid climatic
conditions which are governed by the
summer monsoon. The summer precipitation
accounts for 75% to 80% of the total annual
rainfall, which normally ranges between 200
cm and 250 cm from June to September.
The principal factors governing the climate
of the town include the altitude, orography,
and the outermost location in relation to
abruptly rising rain-wearing winds. The
57
location of the town gives it a very high
rainfall, the normal for the year being 2794
mm. The mean temperature varies between
8°C in January and 20°C in June (Joshi et al.
1983). It has been observed that in general
the average annual rainfall as well as the
number of rainy days have declined over the
past hundred years (Tiwari 2014; Tiwari and
Joshi 2007, 2012, 2013, 2015). Conforming
to climatic conditions and altitude the natural
vegetation around Nainital is very thick and
comprises of many species of temperate
evergreen types (Joshi and Pant 1990).
However, during recent decade the forest and
biodiversity around the town degraded and
depleted steadily ad significantly mainly due
to increasing anthropogenic impacts and land
use intensifications in the catchment (Singh
and Gopal 2002).
Nainital is situated in the close proximity
of the Main Boundary Thrust (MBT) that
separates the Siwaliks hills situated in south
from the Lesser Himalayan ranges extending
in the north. Besides, MBT the town is crisscrossed by several other faults which make
the geology of the watershed highly complex
Urbanisation Challenges in the Himalayan Region in the context of
Climate Change Adaptation and Disaster Risk Mitigation
growth of Nainital the real estate and tourism
became thriving business.
(Valdiya 1988). A major fault line, called the
Nainital fault, passing through the Naini
Lake separates the entire watershed into two
parts (Figure 2). Geologically, Nainital hills
form south-eastern terminus of the Krol
belt sedimentaries, exposed in a number of
structural basins in northwest Himalaya,
constituting a succession of NagthatBlaini-InfraKrol-Krol and Tal Formations
(Sharma 2006). The drainage network of the
watershed is greatly influenced by geology
and structural formation (Gupta and Uniyal
2013). The average slope in different areas
of the watershed ranges between 1° and 55°
(Rautela et al. 2014). Part of Naini Lake
watershed and Nainital town is constituted
by small micro-watershed of Sukhatal.
Sukhatal is an ephemeral lake-let which holds
water in its bed from its catchment. The water
eventually finds its way through the shattered
rocks of the fault zone and finally drains to
Naini lake.
The popularity and importance of town was
further boosted with the installation of rail
link to Kathgodam in 1884 and the formation
of district Nainital in 1891. Nainital became
the summer seat of the North Western
Provinces (NWP). In 1915, Kathgodam –
Nainital road (36 km) was completed, and
also electric supply came to the town (Clay
1928). In the later half of nineteenth century
Nainital witnessed a phenomenal growth
in urban functions, and a range of facilities
and services emerged to cater the growing
needs of the town. A number of European
schools for boys and girls came up in Nainital
largely for the children of the British Colonial
officials and soldiers, and Nainital became an
important centre of education for the British
(Joshi et al. 1983). The town enjoyed the
status of the summer capital of Uttar Pradesh
(UP) even after independence. After it was
made the summer capital, a remarkable
expansion of the town occurred. However, in
1963 the Government of Uttar Pradesh (UP)
decided not to shift the State capital from
Lucknow to Nainital during summer months.
The Secretariat building now houses the High
Court of Uttarakhand.
DEMOGRAPHIC GROWTH AND URBAN
DEVELOPMENT - A HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE
Nainital is the most recent town of Kumaon as
it was discovered by Mr P. Barron a European
merchant and an enthusiastic hunter in 1841.
The habitation in Nainital started towards the
end of the first half of the nineteenth century.
According to the data available, Nainital had
become a popular hill resort by 1847 with
some 40 houses and buildings. With the
Naini Lake is situated in a densely populated
valley in the Kumaon Himalaya and is one of
the most popular tourist resorts in Northern
Principal Morphometric Attributes of Naini Lake
Maximum Length (m)
1423
Breadth (m)
253-423
Maximum depth (m)
27.3 in Northern half and 25.5 in Southern half
Mean depth (m)
18
Surface area (ha)
48
Lake shoreline (m)
3458
Volume at maximum level (m )
3
8.58
Source: Rawat 1987
58
Case Study - 1
Nainital, Uttrakhand
India. The picturesque surroundings of
valley together with the panoramic beauty
of natural lake, its proximity to plains in
the south and salubrious climatic conditions
were the main reasons that promoted the
development of Nainital a famous health and
recreation resort during the British time and
afterwards (Joshi et al. 1983). Nainital is still
one of the most popular tourist destination,
and also an important town. Besides being
the seat of High Court of Uttarakhand, house
of district and sub-district administration
and headquarters of Kumaon Division of
Uttarakhand State and Kumaon University, it
is also well known centre of good educational
facilities and medical and other services. The
Greater Nainital Development Authority
(GNDA) was established in 1984 to regulate
development of the town. In 1989, GNDA
was dissolved and Nainital Lake Region
Special Area Development Authority
(NLRSADA) was established. The year 2000
saw the creation of Uttarakhand State and
the setting up of the High Court of the State
in Nainital. Nainital is still fast growing and
one of the most heavily visited hill resorts on
northern India.
The surroundings of Naini Lake which were
first inhabited in the 1850’s, grew into a town
of 6903 people by 1901 and to 41461 by
2011(Table 2). The urban population growth,
which is positively the bulk of the increase, has
taken place after 1951. The town registered
a moderate growth of 7.33% population
during 2000-2011 aganist 29.49% of previous
decade (Table 2). The decline of population
growth during 2001 - 2011 is attributed
to the establishment of the High Court of
Uttarakhand in Nainital and consequent
shifting of most of the government offices
from Nainital to the growing township of
Bhimtal. Being a major tourist destination
and seat of the High Court of Uttarakhand
State Nainital has a large floating population,
particularly during summer months.
The remarkable feature of the urban
demographic evolution of Nainital is that
before 1981 the population increased in
only those areas which are characterized
Population Growth in Nainital (1901 - 2011)
Census Years
Total Population
Net Change
1901
6903
-
1911
10270
3367
% Change
48.77
1921
11235
965
9.38
1931
10673
-562
-5.02
1941
11718
1045
9.72
1951
13093
1375
11.73
1961
16080
2987
22.81
1971
25167
9087
56.51
1981
26093
926
3.67
1991
29831
3738
14.32
2001
38630
8799
29.49
2011
41461
2831
7.33
Source: Census of India, 2011
59
Urbanisation Challenges in the Himalayan Region in the context of
Climate Change Adaptation and Disaster Risk Mitigation
by gentle slope and lower altitude, such as
Mallital Bazaar, Tallital Bazar, and Mall
Road, and these areas were the main pockets
of the concentration of population marked
with very high population density. However
after 1981 higher elevation areas, steep slope
and fragile zone of Sher Ka Danda, Staff
House, Balrampur House, Lower Sher Ka
Danda, Shri Krishnapur and Stoneleigh
Compound registered phenomenal growth
of population. These areas have now also
very high concentration and density of
population. In 1981, Nainital had an average
population density was 211.72 persons/
km2, which increased by over 55 times to
12148.30 in 2001. The highest density of
11541.93 persons/km2 was recorded in Staff
House Ward and the lowest density of 632.35
persons/km2 in Narayan Nagar Ward. The
main reasons for the increase in population
and its density in Nainital have been the
rapid development of tourism, growth of
market, service and commercial sectors; and
emergence of educational institutions in the
town. The increased tourist arrival has not
only an impact on the economy of the town,
but it equally influenced its evolution and the
functional morphology. Conforming to the
needs of growing tourism, hotels, restaurants,
parks, picnic spots, gardens, shopping centres,
parking areas, facilities of recreation, tourist
guidance, and transport now constitute
important components of the morphology of
the town (Joshi et al. 1983).
SEASONAL DEMOGRAPHIC FLUX AND ITS
IMPLICATIONS FOR CLIMATE CHANGE:
As per the Census of India 2011 record
Nainital had a total permanent population
of 41461 persons. In addition to this, the
town also hosts a large floating population of
approximately 10000 persons during the peak
tourist season from April to June who mostly
work as petty vendors, coolies, boatmen,
horsemen, waiters in hotels and restaurants.
Nainital has been a tourist destination ever
since it was discovered in the mid-nineteenth
century. The war with Pakistan in 1965 and
1971 further boosted Nainital’s tourism
industry as the Kashmir valley remained
unofficially closed for tourist arrivals for
the years till recently. During the late 1980’s
tourist population were at the peak, but
thereafter a sudden drop occurred. It may be
suggested that the drop in tourist population
in the early 1990’s occurred probably due to
the opening up of other easily accessible and
cheaper destinations in the surrounding hill
districts of Kumaon and Garhwal, and also
due to the extremely high population density,
and considerable decline of water quality of
the lake during the summer season. However,
the tourist arrival started picking up in the
following decades.
In 2003, the floating population of Nainital
that mainly include tourists was 4.24 lakhs,
which increased to 5.18 lakhs by 2005,
recording an increase of 22% with average
annual growth rate was 7% over a period of
three years (2003 - 2005) (Singh and Gopal
2002). In Nainital, most of the tourists
(floating population) arrival is in three
summer months (April - June) and two
months in autumn (October - November)
which are known as peak tourist seasons.
Taking the tourist population of 2005 (5.18
lakhs) as the base, the average days of stay
per tourist as 15, the average tourist load per
day works out to 34533 or say 35000 (Singh
and Gopal 2002). Further, it was that the
educational and training institutions and the
University together account for at least 20000
population. Besides, being district head
quarter town and location of district court
and High Court, and office of the Divisional
Commissioner, large number of people visits
the town on official business. The estimated
number of such visitors is around 7000 (Singh
60
Case Study - 1
Nainital, Uttrakhand
and Gopal 2002). Thus, the total number
of floating population in Nainital town has
been estimated to be about 129000 in 2015.
Another indicator reflecting the increased
tourism activity in recent past is the number
of vehicles entering the town. The data shows
that the number of light vehicles that entered
the town during the peak tourism months
has increased by about 46% in the past three
years (Singh and Gopal 2002). One of the
implications of increased tourists vehicle
is the rise in vehicular pollution and traffic
congestion on the narrow roads with limited
carrying capacity. This pollution and traffic
congestion is already being felt, and could
become a major problem to human health
and pedestrians’ movement especially during
summer months, and particularly in the event
of disasters.
EXPOSURE TO CLIMATE CHANGE INDUCED GEOHYDROLOGICAL DISASTERS:
The young and rising Himalayan mountains
are highly susceptible to landslides and
erosions. Nainital situated in close proximity
of the Main Boundary Thrust (MBT) –
the tectonic juncture between the Lesser
Himalayan Ranges in the north and the
Siwaliks Hills in the south -- is particularly
vulnerable to geo-hydrological hazards.
Impact of tectonic movements has resulted
in intense shearing, faulting, thrusting and
fracturing of the rocks observed in the area
(Valdiya 1988 and Sharma 2006). Moreover,
the terrain is characterized by predominance
of high relative relief. Together these make
the area very sensitive to slope failure and
processes of mass movement. The increasing
magnitude of anthropogenic activities for
infrastructure development further enhance
the slope-instability (Disaster Management
and Mitigation Centre, Government of
Uttarakhand 2011).The activity of rock fall
is quite common on hills sloping over 45°,
61
and a number of debris fans and cones have
resulted from the recurring mass-movements
in the lake basin (Valdiya 1988). The rocks
of the area are folded into a broad syncline
plunging northward and its northern limb
is dislocated by a fault referred as ‘Nainital
fault’ that run along the lake and beyond.
The NW-SE trending lake fault passes
through Balia nala in south has differentially
uplifted Sher-Ka-danda hill on east vis-à-vis
Ayarpatha on the west (Valdiya 1988). The
sympathetic faults merging with the Lake
Fault and development of criss-cross fractures
and shears are responsible for number of
landslides in the basin. In fact, Naini Lake
originated as a result of differential vertical
- rather rotational - movement along the
Nainital Fault, which led to the impoundment
of water of the stream flowing in the Naini
valley (Figures 2 and 3).
Geographically, it is a critical zone, in as
much as, it lies within the belt of maximum
precipitation (2814.06 mm), and also shows
relief differences of the highest order (Joshi
et al. 1983). These differences are manifest
not only in the ecological diversities but also
account for the characteristic geomorphic
processes operating in the area, and the
resultant landscape types. The Lesser
Himalayan Ranges rising to an altitude
of 2610 m above the mean sea level in the
region makeup the physiography of the
area, and erosion and aggradational process
have considerably shaped and reshaped the
geomorphic landscape of the lake watershed
(Valdiya 1988 and Sharma 2006). The Lesser
Himalayan mountains in the region are
characterized not only by aprons all around
the massif of debris derived from the massmovement, but several tectonic lakes within the
catchment, many of which have disappeared
following excessive sedimentation (Valdiya
1988). The geomorphic processes that
operated in the past continue to work in
Urbanisation Challenges in the Himalayan Region in the context of
Climate Change Adaptation and Disaster Risk Mitigation
the area more vigorously owing to human
interference with the natural landscape. As
mentioned earlier that due to the presence
of Main Boundary Thrust (MBT) and a
number of other major and minor faults the
town constitutes a tectonically alive domain
which is responsible for highly deformed
rock conditions in the entire area (Sharma
2006). Besides, during the recent past the
rapid urbanization, settlement growth and
infrastructural development have been very
massive and phenomenal intensifying a
variety of anthropogenic process interacting
with the fragile environment of Lake Region
(Tiwari 2014; Tiwari and Joshi 2007, 2012,
2013, 2015). This has rendered the region
highly prone to mass wasting particularly to
landslides.
Consequently, the entire area is tectonically
alive, ecologically fragile and highly
exposed to a variety of geo-hydrological
hazards. The entire township of Nainital is
highly vulnerable to landslides and other
processes of mass movement, particularly
creeping and subsidence (Valdiya 1988;
Sharma 2006; Rautela et al. 2014). The
landslide activity is determined by many
factors such as slope, geology, structure,
lineament, geomorphology, climate, rainfall
and land use pattern and its dynamics. The
principal factors that initiate landslides are
heavy and prolonged rainfall, cutting and
deep excavations on slopes for buildings,
earthquake shocks and tremors, widespread
deforestation and population pressure. A
large part of Nainital town, particularly, the
steep slopes on both the sides of Lake are
perennially under constant and repeated
threats of landslides and mass movements.
Increase in population and rapid urbanisation
has led to expansion of construction activities
in fragile terrains and has catapulted frequency
of landslides to dramatic proportions right
since the evolution of the town. The recent
observation in rainfall pattern has further
increased the vulnerability of the settlement
hydro-geological hazards, particularly the
landslides (Sharma 2006).
Nainital has experienced devastating
landslides of variable magnitude ever since
the evolution and development of town
(Oldham 1880, Auden1942, Nautiyal 1949,
Hukku et al.1977, Pant and Kandpal 1990,
Sharma 2006). The entire northwest portion
of the town is developed over landslide debris
that accumulated in past due to successive
landslides. The five disastrous landslide
events occurred in the year 1867, 1880, 1898,
1924 and 1998 caused massive devastation
of urban infrastructure and loss of lives in
the town. These geo-hydrological disasters
not only transformed the urban and natural
landscape of the town, but also underlined
the need to understand the local geo-tectonic
and geomorphological conditions before
allowing to expand the urbanization in
fragile mountain terrain. However, the most
disastrous landslide that damaged a large part
of township was on 18th September 1880,
which originated from the snow view located
in the Sher Ka Danda ridge in the northeast,
following a continuous heavy rains of 84 cm
in 36 hours. The slide debris washed away
number of settlements on down-slopes in
the northern end of the lake causing death of
more than 193 people. The present hub of the
town - the ‘flat’ was formed in the northern
fringe of the lake due to the deposition of
massive pile of debris generated from Snow
View landslide.
More than 50% of the human settlements
in Nainital are situated on landslide debris
deposited over the years. The geo-hydrological
hazards are thus causing colossal damage to
the urban infrastructure in complex geological
environment of the urban habitation zone of
Nainital as well as its surrounding peri-urban
areas. Rapid urbanization in the town may
62
Case Study - 1
Nainital, Uttrakhand
result in increased vulnerability of mountain
slopes to mass wasting processes. The urban
sprawl of the town during last few decades
has been phenomenal consequently exerting
pressure on already vulnerable geological
environment (Tiwari 2014; Tiwari and Joshi
2007, 2012, 2013, 2015).
Studies, indicated that lack of proper surface
drainage and unplanned anthropogenic
intervention emerged as the major reasons
for slope instability in Nainital. In view of
this detailed network of surface drains was
developed in the watershed, and human
intervention and construction on instable
slopes were prohibited. There are 21 major
and 3 minor drains connecting the lake of
which a few have been constructed along the
course of perennial streams. Out of 21 major
drains, 14 are from Sher-ka-danda side and
only 6 are from Ayarpatta side. However,
the largest feeder drain is the one which
collects the drainage and spring waters of the
western-end of the catchment – called the
‘Naina Devi Temple Drain’ or ‘Bara Nalla’.
The Naina Devi Temple Drain and the one
entering the lake near the Mallital rickshaw
stand are perennial. The major difference
in the drainage of Sher-ka-danda side and
and Ayarpatta slopes is largely because of
different rock type. The Ayarpatta mainly
consists of limestone and dolomite which
are highly permeable to rainwater (Disaster
Management and Mitigation Centre,
Government of Uttarakhand 2011).
There are a number of springs, generally
located on fractures and faults Besides,
these there are a large number of gullies
descending down the steep slopes, carrying
discharges from springs. The Bye Law of
1930 laid down provisions for regulating
anthropogenic activities in three areas around
the lake (e.g., Sher ka Danda, Ayarpatha
and beyond the lake basin system) that
were classified as being Prohibited areas for
63
construction. In the recent past the issue of
environmental instability around Nainital
has also been raised by various civil society
groups and individuals in the apex court
of the country (Supreme Court of India)
and also in High Court of Uttarakhand.
Both the honourable courts advised against
undertaking construction activities on the
vulnerable slopes around the lake.
In spite of this, the built up area has
significantly increased in all the three areas
prohibited for construction by the Bye
Law. Nainital Lake Region Special Area
Development
Authority
(NLRSADA)
which is responsible for giving building plan
permission revised the building byelaws in
1992 to restrict further construction activities
in Nainital. Construction activities are not
allowed in areas having more than 50%
slope. Although 1.64 km2 of total town is
demarcated as prohibited area and unsafe for
any construction. However, this area is under
pressure for further urban growth without the
desired level of planning and development
control. During 2005 - 2010 the built up area
in these areas has increased by almost 50%
which is much more than average built up
area increase of 34% in the town during the
period resulting in intensive land use changes
(Table 3 and 4 and Figure 4 ). The growth of
built up area has been particularly vey high in
Sher ka Danda prohibited area where it has
increased by more than 56%. The unplanned
and unregulated construction on fragile
slopes resulted in degradation of forest and
bidiversity, and depletion water resources
which feed the lake.
Despite rapid urban growth and unplanned
constructions of houses and hotels the
pressure of heavy influx of tourists and
other seasonal population has far exceeded
the carrying capacity of urban amenities
in Nainital (Table 5). Furthermore, the
expansion of urbanization and population
Urbanisation Challenges in the Himalayan Region in the context of
Climate Change Adaptation and Disaster Risk Mitigation
Table 3: Land Use Changes around Nainital (2005 - 2010)
Land Use Classes
Area (in m2)
2005
2010
Change in Area
%
Change
Built up Area
630498.18
8,44,108.12
2,13,609.94
33.88
Open Area
345878.41
2,08,344.41
-1,37,534.00
-39.76
Trees Outside Forest 12,42,649.75
6,99,390.98
5,43,258.77
-43.72
Open Forest
26,61,936.97
5,18,460.12
24.19
21,43,476.85
Dense Forest
77,89,118.89
77,46,524.83
-42,594.06
-0.55
Agriculture
34,849.72
24,333.99
-10,515.74
-30.17
Water-bodies
4,41,331.48
4,43,164.00
1,832.52
0.42
Total
1,26,27,803.29 1,26,27,803.29
--
--
Source: Rautela et al. 2014
The Naini lake is not only the prime attraction
for large number visitors, but it constitutes
the source of drinking water for most of the
population of the town. Nearly 40% of the
total water supply comes directly from the lake
(Singh and Gopal 2002). However, due rapid
urban growth and phenomenal magnitude
of construction activities in the catchment
area the rate of sedimentation has been
increasing progressively posing serious threat
to the quality of water and the life of lake.
As a result, the mean depth of the lake had
reduced by 2.88 m decreasing water volume
by 7682.5m3 between a period of 84 years
between 1895 and 1979 (Rawat 1987; 2009).
The bathymetric analysis carried out in Lake
Nainital has given a sediment accumulation
increase facilitated the emergence and
growth of slums in the close proximity
of lake, along the drainage channels and
fragile slope in Nainital. As many as 12
slum pockets have been identified in a small
town of 41000 inhabitants (Table 6). The
total population of these slums was 9667
persons in 2001accounting for about 21% of
the total population of the town. Narayan
Nagar situated out of the lake catchment
in the north-western fringe of the town
has the highest, and Kathbaas located in
Tallital has the lowest population of slum
inhabitants. The growth and expansion of
slums have further increased the vulnerability
of large population particularly poor and
marginalized to climate change induced risks.
Growth of Built up area Prohibited Zones in Nainital (2005 - 2010)
Name of the Prohibited Zone
Area (in m2)
2005
2010
Change in Area
%
Change
Sher ka Danda
62203.4
97359.3
35155.9
56.5
Ayarpatha
31797.5
48853.3
17055.8
53.6
Beyond Lake Watershed
57155.2
82266.3
25111.1
43.9
Total
151156.1
228478.9
77322.7
51.2
Source: Rautela et al. 2014
64
Case Study - 1
Nainital, Uttrakhand
Urban and Tourist Amenties in Nainital
Population and Amenities
Permanent Population
39840
Number of Tourists
310000 yr
Number of Hotels
120
Number of Shops
900
Number of Residential Houses
8000
Floating Population
7000
Source: Singh and Gopal, 2002
rate of 67 m3/yr between 1895 and 1967 and
78 m3/yr during the period between 1967 and
1979 (Rawat 1987; 2009). Sharma (1981) has
estimated the life of the lake to be 314 years
based on sedimentation deposit of 0.239
million m3 during 1960-1977 at the rate of 0.22
m m3/yr. Moreover, carbonate rock lithology
which is more susceptible to weathering,
high precipitation and frequent landslides
may account for a higher sedimentation rate
in the lake-bed. The climate change is likely
to intensify the magnitude of anthropogenic
stress in the lake and affect the availability
and quality of water.
CLIMATE CHANGE ADAPTATION MEASURES
PRIORITIES, EFFORTS AND GAPS
Urbanisation in Uttarakhand has largely
been an unplanned process resulting in
the lack of civic amenities in proportion
to population density. Unplanned urban
growth together with rapid urban expansion
and increasing inflow of tourists have made
severe environmental impacts on the urban
Slum Settlements and Population in Nainital
S. No
Locality
Population
1
Narayan Nagar
Slum Settlement
Mallital
1947
2
Breysite
Mallital
1360
3
Sardar Line
Mallital
960
4
Committee Line
Mallital
750
5
Bakery Compnd
Mallital
650
6
Mangawali
Tallital
750
7
Harinagar
Tallital
1200
8
Dibhighat
Tallital
780
9
Kathbaas
Tallital
90
10
Rajpura
Mallital
800
11
Sukhatal
Mallital
180
12
Jubleehall
Mallital
200
Total
9667
Source: Urban Development Department Government of Uttarakhand
65
Urbanisation Challenges in the Himalayan Region in the context of
Climate Change Adaptation and Disaster Risk Mitigation
ecosystem of Nainital, particularly in view
of climate change. Nainital despite being
a new town, has grown in an completely
unplanned manner causing immense
pressure on the limited urban infrastructure
and services resulting into degradation of
the urban environmental conditions and
increasing vulnerability of large population
to emerging threats of climate change. Major
environmental concerns associated with such
unplanned urban development are emerging
risks of climate change induced geohydrological hazards, destruction of forest
area, loss of bio-diversity, potential urban
pollution in the form of air, and depletion
of water resources. Despite realizing the
increasing vulnerability of urban areas to
climate change induced risks no specific
climate change adaptation plan has been
evolved for any cities of Uttarakhand
including Nainital by the State Government
(Government of Uttarakhand 2012).
However, Nainital is covered under the
Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal
Mission (JNNURM), and under which a
range of urban development interventions,
including the development of city sanitation
plan in underway in the town (Urban
Development Department, Government of
Uttarakhand 2007). Currently, no detailed
climate vulnerability and risk assessments or
community perceptions for urban centres of
Uttarakhand are available (Government of
Uttarakhand 2012). However, realizing that
climate change is likely to negatively impact
infrastructure and worsen access to basic urban
services and quality of life in cities, the State
Action Plan on Climate Change (SAPCC)
recommended that Urban Development
Department (UDD) of Uttarakhand would
take necessary steps towards collating
available data and information of impacts
of climate change on cities, their systems,
infrastructure, and people towards improving
scientific knowledge and evidence base
and understanding of climate change and
its impacts (Government of Uttarakhand
2012). The SAPCC says that it will begin the
process of developing the necessary systems,
databases and protocols for collecting and
collating the necessary evidence based
observations and evolve appropriate response
strategies.
Towards improving governance mechanisms,
institutional
decision-making,
and
convergence, the UDD will initiate the
formation of a Climate Cell within the
Department, and notify sectoral focal points.
It will take steps to improve understanding of
climate change and its effects; education and
awareness; and developing and strengthening
partnership and cooperation. It will also
initiate processes for developing the necessary
coordination mechanisms, sectoral policy
initiatives, institutional arrangements, etc. to
ensure that urban agglomerations and urban
populations in the State build their capacity
to be resilient to the risks and impacts
of climate change through implementing
adaptation measures and contributing to
mitigation of greenhouse gas emissions’
(Government of Uttarakhand 2012). The
plan further emphasises that ‘the UDD will
develop and deploy a range of awareness
and capacity building programmes for
municipal officials for promoting appropriate
measures towards climate resilience in their
respective Urban Local Bodies (ULBs),
as also similar programmes for building
awareness on climate change and its impacts
for the urban populations. The UDD will
also seek to converge such efforts with other
sectoral initiatives such as health, education,
housing, water etc., and foster inter and intra
departmental coordination’ (Government of
Uttarakhand 2012).
66
Case Study - 1
Nainital, Uttrakhand
CLIMATE CHANGE ADAPTATION AND DISASTER
RISK MITIGATION PROGRAMS AND GAPS
 Preparation of disaster management
plans
Incrasing uncertainty in the precipitation
patterns in the state is amply highlighted
by the fact that both in the years 2007-08
and 2008-09 the state faced severe drought
conditions. In the year 2007-08 nine districts
of the state (out of total 13 districts) were
officially notified as being drought affected
while in 2008-09 ten districts were notified
as being drought affected. Whereas, in 2010
and 2013 the entire state witnessed excess
monsoonal precipitation and massive losses
were reported from across the state due to
repeated flood, flash flood, landslide and
cloudburst events. Under the influence
of climate change the geo-environment of
Uttarakhand is increasingly getting more
susceptible to a number of problems that
include soil erosion, landslide, prolonged dry
spells, glacier recession, erratic precipitation,
extreme climate events and rapid loss of
habitat and bio diversity. These have a direct
implication upon the issues related to the
livelihood for people in the state and adjoining
regions. During the recent decades, climate
change driven fluctuations in the precipitation
pattern have shown increasing trends which
pose serious threats to ecologically fragile,
tectonically active and densely populated
urban ecosystems, such as Nainital. During
the recent years, the Disaster Mitigation
and Management Centre, Dehradun has
carried out a number of initiatives in the
field of disaster management and mitigation
for Nainital town (Disaster Management
and Mitigation Centre, Government of
Uttarakhand 2011). These include:
 Structural
vulnerability
and
risk
assessment Vulnerability assessment of
the building stock using rapid
 Land use/land cover change studies
using high-resolution satellite data
 Landslide and
assessment
environmental
risk
 Socioeconomic vulnerability assessment
67
 Awareness generation
 Training and
institutions
capacity
building
of
However, hazard zone mapping of Nainital
Catchment was also carried out by Valdiya
(1988); Sharma (2006) and Gupta and Uniyal
(2012) (Figure 5). However, no detailed
climate vulnerability risk assessments so
far has been carried out from the view
point of disasters, and particularly climate
change induced geo-hydrological disasters
for any township of Uttarakhand, including
Nainital. Nevertheless, in general the Disaster
Management Department has been carrying
out a range of related activities for the entire
State of Uttarakhand including the urban
centres (Disaster Management and Mitigation
Centre, Government of Uttarakhand 2011).
As per the State Disaster Management
Action Plan (SDMAP) evolved by Disaster
Management
and
Mitigation
Centre
(DMMC), Government of Uttarakhand, the
following main initiatives are being taken for
disaster risk reduction in Uttarakhand:
Assessment of the impact of natural
disasters upon masses, particularly
women;
Assessment of the people’s perception
of climate change and documentation of
their adaptation strategy through primary
data collection in various regions of the
state;
Assessment of the changes being
introduced in the geo-environment due
to climate change through primary data
collection in various regions of the state;
Urbanisation Challenges in the Himalayan Region in the context of
Climate Change Adaptation and Disaster Risk Mitigation
Study of the impact on natural resources
and livelihoods of people due to changing
weather patterns and extreme weather
events;
Documentation of best practices in
traditional coping methods, possible
interventions to meet present demand and
promotion of the same
Documentation of the indigenous
technical knowledge of the masses
The City Development Plan (CDP)
formulated under Jawaharlal Nehru National
Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM)
by Uttarakhand Urban Development
Department has made provisions for
protection
of
natural
environment,
conservation of lake and water resources, and
improved sanitation and sewage system in the
town. The comparison of urban land use of
1995 to the proposed land use under City
Development Plan (CDP) for 2011 is shown
in presented in Table 7 (Urban Development
Department, Government of Uttarakhand
2007). The land use plan proposed increase
in areas under residential and transportation,
and marginal increase in the area demarcated
as ‘prohibited area’. The City Development
Plan also proposed increase in the parking
area from the existing 0.12 ha in 1995 to 2.24
ha in 2011. However, the areas for parks and
open spaces remained unchanged (4.02 ha).
A project for conservation of Nainital and
other Lakes, jointly funded by Government
Current and Proposed Land Use under City Development Plan (2011) for
Nainital
S.
No.
Land Use Categories
Land Use 1995
Proposed Land Use 2011
1
Residential
90.54
7.72
186.00
15.86
2
Rural
15.50
1.31
17.50
1.32
3
Commercial
17.75
1.51
15.75
1.51
% to Total
NNPP Area
Area
(ha)
Area
(ha)
% to Total
NNPP Area
4
Institutional
34.00
2.90
34.00
2.90
5
Parks and Open
Spaces
10.64
0.91
10.64
0.91
6
Public Utilities
99.02
8.44
89.77
7.65
7
Transportation
14.07
1.20
16.14
1.38
8
Forest Areas
508.76
43.37
508.76
43.37
9
Water-bodies
68.90
5.87
68.90
5.87
10
Prohibited Areas
135.08
11.52
164.00
13.98
11
Undeveloped Open
Area
177.7
15.15
--
--
1.41
61.16
5.21
100.00
1173.00
100
12
Others
0.74
Total
1173.00
68
Case Study - 1
Nainital, Uttrakhand
of India and Government of Uttarakhand
is currently under implementation in the
town. However, these urban development
initiatives did not incorporate the climate
change impacts on urban ecosystem and a
mechanism for adaptation.
CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
Nainital is one of the youngest towns of the
Himalayan State of Uttarakhand, and some
remarkable efforts were made during the last
some decades to improve the environmental
governance of the town and conservation of
lake. However, the environmental conditions
of the town continued to deteriorate. Nainital
situated in tectonically active domain and
in the zone of maximum precipitation
characterized by relief differences of the
highest order is highly vulnerable to the
processes of
environmental changes.
The rapid urbanization is increasing the
susceptibility of intensively modified and
densely populated fragile slopes to the active
processes of mass movement and landslides.
Moreover, the rapidly changing climatic
conditions, particularly the climate change
induced hydrological extremes are posing
severe threats to the sustainability of fast
growing urban ecosystem by increasing the
frequency, intensity and severity of geohydrological hazards in the town and its
surrounding region. The climate change
is likely to trigger the slope instability and
disrupt the hydrological regime of the
lake catchment which is already under
stress of increasing urbanization. The city
development plan and also the state disaster
risk reduction framework and climate change
adaptation plan did not make any provision
for addressing the emerging risks of climate
change, particularly the geo-hydrological
disaster in Nainital and other towns of
Uttarakhand. In view of this the following
recommendations are made:
69
A comprehensive climate change
vulnerability assessment and mapping
of the town should be carried taking
into account all the critical parameters
of exposure, sensitivity and adaptive
capacity of urban ecosystem.
A detailed and large-scale risk zone
mapping of the town should be carried
out analyzing the parameters of geology,
structure, litho-logy, geomorphology,
demography, economy and livelihood,
infrastructure and services.
A comprehensive urban land use policy
should be evolved and implemented taking
into conservation, developmental, climate
change adaptation, disaster risk reduction
needs and priorities of the town.
A participatory framework for the
conservation
of
water
resources
particularly
through
reducing
anthropogenic intervention in the recharge
zone of the Naini Lake and Sukha Tal
should be evolved.
An integrated climate change adaptation
governance plan need to be formulated
incorporating
the
above-mentioned
points involving a range of institutions
and stakeholders (e.g., government
line departments, private enterprises,
civil society and non-governmental
organizations,
community
based
organizations and academic and research
institutions).
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Source: Author
Source: Gupta and Uniyal 2013 Figure 1
Source: Gupta and Uniyal 2013 Figure 3
Source: Author Figure 4
Source: Disaster Management and Mitigation Centre, GovernFigure 2 ment of Uttarakhand, Dehradun 2011 Figure 5
72
Urbanisation Challenges in the Himalayan Region in the context of
Climate Change Adaptation and Disaster Risk Mitigation
For more information, contact:
Indian Himalayas Climate Adaptation Programme (IHCAP)
Embassy of Switzerland
Swiss Cooperation Office India
Nyaya Marg, Chanakyapuri
New Delhi – 110 021
T: +91 11 4995 9570
W: www.ihcap.in
E: [email protected]