LEH: “People think floods are just about cloudbursts — but that’s only half the story, ” says renowned geologist and 2010 Leh flood survivor Dr. Ritesh Arya. “The real danger is when a landslide creates a natural dam — a wall of rock and debris. Rainwater builds up behind it and in seconds, the wall bursts. A roaring flood races down the valley, wiping out everything in its path, ” added he.
Watching Dharali footage during an interview with Daily Post and discussing Kishtwar floods as a panelist on India Today, Dr. Arya was jolted back to the night of August 5, 2010 in Leh when a wall of water came for his own home. That night, over 200 lives were lost. Surviving the
tragedy he discovered what he called the Reservoir Wall Rupture Mechanism:
● A landslide blocks a river, creating a natural dam.
● Rain or cloudburst fills the reservoir behind it.
● The wall gives way suddenly, unleashing devastation downstream.
“In a warming world, we can’t stop cloudbursts — but we can survive if we study the geology, avoid fragile paleochannels, and build only in stable, safe ground, ” Dr. Arya warns. “The Indus Valley and Saraswati civilizations perished because they went too close to the riverbeds. We must not repeat that mistake.”
His prescription for survival:
● Conduct detailed geological mapping of fragile Himalayan zones.
● Relocate at-risk settlements to geologically favorable locations.
● Integrate Reservoir Wall Rupture hazard assessment into disaster planning.
“Proper geological investigations and building in geologically favorable locations is the key for sustainable living in global warming times.” — Dr. Ritesh Arya