EPG Blames Unregulated Riverbed Mining for Kishtwar Cloudburst Tragedy

SRINAGAR: The Environmental Policy Group (EPG) has said that the devastating cloudburst at Chashoti village in Paddar, Kishtwar—which has claimed dozens of lives, including pilgrims—is a grim reminder of how unchecked environmental degradation is amplifying the impact of extreme weather events in Jammu and Kashmir. Offering condolences to the bereaved families and prayers for the injured and missing, the group said the incident was part of a “disturbing pattern” of cloudbursts, landslides, and flash floods recently reported from Kishtwar, Paddar, Kokernag, Kupwara, Harwan, Sonamarg, the Leh–Srinagar highway, and Pahalgam’s Betaab Valley.

EPG stated that rampant and illegal riverbed mining—through the indiscriminate extraction of boulders, gravel, and sand—was a key factor contributing to the increased vulnerability of downstream communities to catastrophic flooding. The practice, the group warned, destabilises riverbeds, weakens embankments, alters natural water flows, and destroys aquatic habitats, reducing the river’s ability to absorb heavy rainfall or sudden glacial melt.

The group also blamed deforestation, destabilisation of mountain slopes, and unplanned tourism infrastructure for eroding the resilience of Himalayan ecosystems. It said its Public Interest Litigation before the Jammu and Kashmir High Court sought judicial intervention to halt destructive activities in forests, rivers, and mountains, and to ensure all development in Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh is based on scientific environmental assessments and disaster-risk considerations.

Calling for a shift from reactive relief measures to preventive action, EPG urged the government and planners to put ecological security and community safety first, warning that without urgent course correction, the scale of recent tragedies could become the new normal in the Himalayas.