By Albert Thyrniang
‘Umiam Bridge Collapses-50 dead’, ‘Out-dated Umiam Bridge gives way, leaves a trail of destruction,’ ‘Expired Meghalaya bridge collapses; downstream villages adversely affected.” These could be the headlines if and when the Umiam Bridge collapses. We move from the hypothetical (or many prophetic) headlines to the actual current stories.
In the last few days we read that 27 Meghalaya pilgrims safely crossed over to Egypt’ and ‘26 Meghalaya residents brought back from Sikkim.’ The former is due to the sudden conflict between Hamas and Israel where already more than 2000 people have fallen victims to fierce battles. The latter is because of the natural calamity in the 8th sister of North East where the death toll has crossed 80. We chose to talk about the Sikkim tragedy due to the implications back home.
The devastating flood that began on October 4, due to a cloudburst led to overflow of water in the Lhonak Lake that feeds the Teesta river. The embankments of the bullet-shaped Himalayan glacial lake burst while the icy water furiously flowed down the river smashing down houses and structures, pummelling through roads and bridges and dams along the river basin burying people alive and carrying dead bodies miles away with the slushy debris. The number of deaths will climb up as rescuers dig through the rocks and sand and mud. The number of displaced people is up to 22,000.
The water from the ever-expanding moraine ridden lake of more than 167.4 hectares located at 17,100 feet above sea level rushed into the Chungthang Dam known as Teesta 3 dam easily washing it away devastating four districts on the way. The combination of the Lhonak Lake and the Teesta dam was deadly.
The killer flood was not unexpected. The Lhonak Lake was always susceptible to glacial outburst say environmentalists and scientists. They have been waving the red flag for a long time. One of the most rapidly growing lakes in the ‘rooftop of the world’ the lake has been a concern because of the global trend of melting glaciers and the more frequent and intense rain. Obviously both the centre and the state governments did not pay heed to ‘soothsayers’. Disaster Management Authorities have been predicting the likeliness of glacial lake outbursts that would “cause huge devastation downstream,” resulting in the “loss of life and property.” Only pipelines to siphon off the water were installed as a short-term solution. Scientific studies have time and again warned of the high risk for potential glacial outbursts from the lake.
The burst was so massive that 60% of the water in the lake was drained out say satellite image analysts. ISRO says that on October 4 images showed the volume of water in the lake reduced by more than half which is equivalent to about 105 hectares area. When such a quantity of water rushes downstream it is bound to be dramatic and destructive.
The ecologically-sensitive Himalayan region that is prone to flash floods and landslides does not seem to be a deterrent for the government. The Himalayas are not recognised as too dangerous to construct big dams. When the 6-year-old Teesta 3 was to be built the ‘faulty design and placement’ of the largest dam in Sikkim was criticised. It was pointed out that the “highly vulnerable” Lhonak Lake would pose a danger not only to the dam but to human lives. Activists argued that the dam did not have sufficient safety measures. Studies found that Teesta 3 dam was one of the many risky dams built close to Himalayan glaciers. For the sake of national ambition for clean energy much human suffering was brought about. For the suffering of this man-made catastrophe the 1,200 megawatt project capable of supplying to power 1.5 million homes will never be a consolation. Is it justified to sacrifice a few lives to attain sufficiency in power?
No wonder now the same environmentalists and scientists are saying, “We knew that this was coming.” They are right in questioning, ‘why on earth the biggest project in the state did not have early warning systems?’ The need for such a system was sounded as ‘urgent’ by the Sikkim’s Department of Science and Technology last May. Not even the lessons from the 2021 dam breach in another Himalayan state, Uttarakhand that killed 81 people were learned by the authorities. Having ignored the well-known and documented warnings we are left with ruing at the unpardonable loss. The victims don’t even hear our mourning. For the grief-stricken survivors it is hardly a solace.
Just last month the whole world watched the horrific double dam collapse in Libya that swallowed more than 11,300 people. The catastrophic deluge has only worsened the chaotic North African country. Though a NATO-backed uprising toppled dictator Moammar Gaddafi in 2011 the country continues to be divided between rival administrations, one in the east, the other in the west.
Even as the country was/is in a politically shaky state, following the Mediterranean storm, Daniel caused heavy rainfall across eastern Libya leading to floods that overwhelmed the two dams. The water from the dams sent a wall of water several meters high over the 90,000 populated coastal Derna city wiping a quarter of the city and sweeping people to the sea.
Parallel to the Sikkim tragedy there was no warning about the dams, which collapsed at dawn when most residents were asleep. The long neglect coupled with corruption is cited as an aiding cause to the floods. Allegations have emerged that the $2 million (allotted in 2012 and 2013) for the maintenance of dams built in the 1970s was diverted elsewhere. Shockingly the firm assigned for the work gave the completion report on its website in November 2012. Investigation for criminal negligence is being done. The investigation will certainly be met with challenges as local political rulers record historic lack of accountability. Here too climate change that results in extreme weather alteration more frequent and severely is blamed.
Regarding the collapsed uphill dams in the northeast of the nation, warnings of the dangers by experts went unheeded. The repeated call for immediate maintenance of the dams built from clay, rocks and earth went into deaf ears of successive governments until it was too late as in the early hours of September 11 thousands perished in just seconds besides the immeasurable destruction.
Fears of a similar catastrophe await the Umiam bridges in Meghalaya, just about 15 km from Shillong. Reports of cracks on the footpath of the bridge started appearing in 2017. Of particular concern is the main bridge that hosts the national highway from Guwahati to Shillong. Built in the 1960s the dam is close to 60 years old. Its life span is over. But it is business as usual. The reports of cracks were dismissed to have been caused by an accident. Concerned citizens have expressed their opinion in articles and letters to the editor in newspapers, including The Shillong Times. They voiced their worry at the pathetic condition of the bridge. They warned of a catastrophe in case the bridge gives way. Example of the collapse of a bridge in Dimapur where five to six vehicles were on it was quoted. The incident killed 4.
In March this year the matter was discussed in the Assembly session. Power Minister, AT Mondal informed that measures like limiting vehicular weights on the bridge were taken and efforts to find an alternative route were on. Plans for an alternative bridge had to be shelved following observation from the Geological Survey of India (GSI) that the project was too close to the main dam. Drilling and blasting would affect the bridge. It was learned from the minister that reports from the agencies which were engaged to assess the bridge said that the vibration level was under permissible limit.
We are also informed that the government has roped in two more agencies to ensure the safety of the Umiam Dam. In the meantime, the government insists that the required safety standards are maintained.
The government’s virtual safety certificate does not mean that there is no danger. The Sikkim government might have said the same of the Lhonak Lake and the Teesta dams. The Libyan government saw no imminent danger to the ruined dams. In case of a similar disaster (due to flood or earthquake or obsoleteness) to the Umiam Dam will we be left asking the same questions as in Sikkim and Libya? Our dam is older than Libya’s. Why has no maintenance been done so far? Why are the warnings right from 2017 been ignored? Do we have early warning systems with the latest technology for the people living downstream? Will we too be caught off guard? Besides the possible deaths and large-scale destruction will the water at the dam be drained out thus leaving the state in darkness?
Such a picture is realistic rather than alarmist!