DRP 191026: India Disaster Management Must Shift from Response to Prevention

October 19, 2026October 19, 2026 SANDRPLeave a comment

(Feature Image: A large part of residential areas witnessed severe flooding in first week of Oct. 2026 in Fazullaganj of Lucknow after heavy rains and flood in Gomti river. Source: Screenshot of FB post)

Two informative reports by Amal Chandra and Venkatesh Dutta in Down To Earth this week have once again highlighted serious gaps in India’s disaster management system. While our forecasting and response have improved in some cases, the number of disasters has also increased sharply. We often fail to understand the exact chain of events and remain reactive until the last moment. A key problem is that our system continues to focus more on response than prevention and lacks a holistic approach to disaster risk reduction.

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Oct. 2026: Budhi Gandaki Flashflood Affects Four Hydro Projects in Nepal

October 13, 2026October 15, 2026 SANDRPLeave a comment

(Feature Image: Screengrab of BBC video report showing flood surge in Budhi Gandaki river damaging construction camp of 341 MW Budhigandaki HEP at Salleri in Gorkha district, Nepal in morning hours of Oct. 11, 2026)

The Budhi Gandaki river corridor in Nepal’s Gorkha district has witnessed a flash flood disaster causing extensive damage to public and private property. The flood reportedly began around 4:00 am on October 11, 2026, following the sudden breach of a landslide dam in a tributary of the Budhi Gandaki.

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Dams, Rivers & People

DRP 121026: Will India’s mining ravaged rivers get justice this time?

October 12, 2026October 12, 2026 SANDRPLeave a comment

(Feature Image: Google Earth May 2025 imagery showing Sone riverbed ravaged by excessive mechanized sand mining activities near Paliganj in Bihar)

In a significant development last week, the Supreme Court has expanded its illegal sand mining case from the National Chambal Gharial Sanctuary to rivers across India. For over six months, the apex court has been hearing the matter and issuing directions to state governments of Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh. However, the directions issued so far are yet to be fully implemented.

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Chambal · Dams, Rivers & People · Ganga · Gangetic Dolphins · Rivers Biodiversity

National Dolphin Day 2026: State of Gangetic Dolphins

October 6, 2026October 9, 2026 SANDRPLeave a comment

(Feature Image: Collage of Gangetic dolphin corpses found in UP, Bihar, Assam & West Bengal between Dec. 2025 & Aug. 2026.)

Marking the National Dolphin Day-Oct. 5, 2026-, this report highlights the deaths, threats and relevant developments concerning the national aquatic animal. In last one year, we have found reports of at least ten Gangetic dolphin deaths, including six in Uttar Pradesh, two in West Bengal, and one each in Bihar and Assam. The reported death toll is higher than in the previous two years, indicating continuing concerns over their survival.

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Dams, Rivers & People · Drought

DRP 051026: Drought: how prepared are we?

October 5, 2026October 6, 2026 SANDRPLeave a comment

(Feature Image: Weekly drought monitor map dated 23 Sept. 2026 shows drought condition in India. Credit: Vimal Misra/ Drought Monitor India )

The DRP issue this week seems to have one central theme, connecting the various parts: Deficit monsoon leading to reduced reservoir levels, increased pollution, mass fish deaths and announcements of unprecedented droughts in more than one state. Since it was known to be a super El Nino Year and even IMD had predicted (though ratgher conservatively) deficit monsoon, the ultimate deficit of 12.6% in SW Monsoon rainfall may in fact seem like bit of a relief. This was largely thanks to unexpected above average rainfall in the wettest month of SW Monsoon, July, largely due to favorable Indian Ocean Dipole.

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Dams, Rivers & People

DRP 280926: Early Warning System important, but not a magic bullet

September 28, 2026September 28, 2026 SANDRPLeave a comment

(Feature Image: Aerial image of the Wanlixi landslide and lake as of 30 July 2026. Credit: Forestry & Nature Conservation Agency, Taiwan, Source: EOS.Org)

While writing about the landslide dam breach in Taiwan last year leading to 24 deaths, Dave Petley remarked: As always, the focus should be on vulnerability and resilience rather than only early warning systems (EWS). This is indeed worth emphasizing, underlining, highlighting. While early warning systems can be important and must be used wherever possible, it is not a magic bullet. It is one of the many other instruments in disaster management.

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Dams, Rivers & People

DRP 210926: Mismanagement at BBMB projects confirmed by CEA and Punjab

September 21, 2026 SANDRPLeave a comment

(Feature Image: The Tribune’s file photo of Pandoh dam)

The Central Electricity Authority has said in its report that there have been some serious operational and maintenance issues at BBMB’s Pandoh project, part of Beas Sutlej Link Project. In a separate development, Punjab government affidavit in the NGT has said that due to mismanagement at Bhakra-Pong dams, there has been avoidable flood disasters in Punjab in several years. Both developments confirm what we have said about role of BBMB projects in 2023 and 2025 floods in Punjab.

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Climate Change · Dams, Rivers & People · Disasters · GLOF · Himalayas

DRP 140926: How prepared are we to face Himalayan Disaster Risks?

September 14, 2026September 14, 2026 SANDRPLeave a comment

(Feature Image: Washed out Teesta III dam in Sikkim. Credit: Save the Hills)

The Himalayan disaster risks are increasing in several different ways, including through new types of disasters that are being added now as is evident from the recent Rasuwa floods in Nepal-Tibet, which originated in collapse of hanging glaciers due to melting of permafrost. The frequency, intensity and spread of the risks are also going up. Considering increasing pace of global warming that is inevitable in coming decades, the disaster risks are only going to go up.

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Dams, Rivers & People

DRP 070926: Protect Himalayan Region from Cascading Disasters

September 7, 2026September 7, 2026 SANDRPLeave a comment

(Feature Image: Hunge Bazar in Nuwakot, damaged by the Bhotekoshi floods. Source: Angad Dhakal/TKP)

In the wake of the Aug. 26 Nepal disaster, civil society groups in India have demanded urgent measures to protect people, mountains and rivers from increasingly complex and cascading disasters across the Himalayan region. The statement issued under the umbrella of People for Himalaya rightly appeals for high-altitude and trans-Himalayan areas to be treated as no-go zones for high-risk mega infrastructure projects, including large hydropower projects.

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Dams, Rivers & People

DRP 310826: Nepal’s Rasuwa flood disaster: Is there a limit to Human Folly?

August 31, 2026August 31, 2026 SANDRPLeave a comment

(Feature Image: Map of Hydropower Projects and condition in Trishuli- Bhote Koshi Basin Map by SANDRP made with Google LLM)

Even as Nepal, Tibet, India and other countries whose citizens are in missing list following the Aug 26 2026 Rasuwa flood disaster for Nepal, and even as the full dimensions of the disaster are still unfolding, a Bloomberg journalist asked SANDRP a pertinent question. Seeing the major role played by operating and under construction hydropower projects in the disaster and the missing list of hundreds of people from such projects, he noted that deaths at disaster hit hydropower projects in Himalayas is a recurring story. During and after every such disaster, there is talk of learning lessons such projects, but there is little change in decision making process. His question was, is there a limit to human folly, beyond which we will see some genuine change?

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