Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Saturday (August 16, 2025) expressed concern over the recent natural calamities in the Union Territory, Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand and called for consultation with experts to see what can be done to "mitigate the risks and dangers."
Talking to reporters near Chisoti on his return to this cloudburst-hit remote village in Kishtwar district, he said the entire Himalayan belt is now more prone to glacial lake bursts and cloudbursts. He was responding to a question about possibility of forming a team of experts by his government to safeguard the fragile ecosystem in Jammu and Kashmir.
Himachal Pradesh bears the brunt of monsoon as cloudbursts, flash floods create havoc
“We are going to have a look at it. It is not just what is happening in Jammu & Kashmir. Look at the scary videos that we saw from Uttarakhand. What is happening in Himachal? We are all now, I think, prone to these glacial lake bursts and cloudbursts. To this freak vague weather, we will have to collectively and individually consult experts to see what we can do to mitigate the risks and the dangers of these things,” Mr. Abdullah said.
Around 60 persons were killed and more than 100 others injured when a massive cloudburst triggered flash floods hit Chisoti, the last motorable village en route to the Machail Mata temple in Kishtwar district, on Thursday afternoon (August 14, 2025). More than 80 persons are also reported missing by their family members following the cloudburst.
