The tragic loss of lives and livelihoods in the recent cloudburst and flash flood incidents in Padder (Kishtwar) and Kathua is yet another painful reminder of the climate crisis unfolding across Jammu & Kashmir. Families have been swept away, homes destroyed and livelihoods shattered. These incidents are part of a disturbing pattern of extreme weather events becoming more frequent and more destructive.
J&K’s mountain systems, once regarded as resilient, are now under unprecedented stress. A warming atmosphere is intensifying rainfall patterns, while decades of unregulated human interference — unregulated streambed mining, unchecked construction, road widening, deforestation sand and boulder extraction from rivers — are weakening the natural safeguards that once absorbed climatic shocks.
What is urgently needed is to shift our perception: J&K is not merely experiencing “bad weather” but living through a full-blown climate emergency. This recognition must drive policy and governance. Authorities must immediately strengthen early warning systems for floods, cloudbursts and landslides, enabling communities to prepare and evacuate in time. Simultaneously, strict enforcement of land-use regulations in fragile zones is essential to prevent further human-induced vulnerabilities.
At the same time, long-term resilience must be built. This includes restoring degraded watersheds, regenerating forests, and investing in climate-resilient infrastructure. Communities themselves need to be involved in developing adaptive strategies — from safer housing designs to community-based disaster preparedness. Traditional knowledge of mountain communities must be integrated with modern science to create locally suited solutions.
The tragedy in Kishtwar and Kathua should serve as a wake-up call for policymakers in Srinagar, Jammu, and New Delhi. The costs of ignoring the crisis will only escalate — in human suffering, economic loss, and ecological collapse. It is time to reframe development in J&K not as a race for roads and real estate, but as a careful balance between human needs and ecological integrity.
If the mountains fall, so will we. Treating J&K’s fragile ecosystems with the seriousness of a climate emergency is not an option — it is a necessity for survival.
