By Manjunath K. Shresthi
youtube.com/@theflagpost
August 16, 2025
Nature is our best teacher, provided we learn and listen attentively to the signals being regularly sent. Every day and month brings its own set of challenges to face. The month of August is no different as we are half way through, and another fortnight left.
The union territory (UT) of Jammu & Kashmir (J & K) always makes headlines. It’s either cross-border terrorists causing problems to the common man, and their lives being ended by our ever vigilant security forces. And the other is ‘Mother Nature’ also taking its fair toll. The incidents of land slides; mudslides & cloudbursts have been on the rise. In its aftermath it brings personal tragedies of untold death and destruction. Loose structures resulting in homes collapsed; electric poles & trees uprooted;precious lives lost; people missing and village roads & bridges washed off. Nature’s fury takes its toll, affects all and spares none.
The hill states of Himachal Pradesh & Uttarakhand too have their share of tragedies. The viral video of the cloudburst in Uttarkashi from Uttarakhand sent a chill down everyone’s spines. The search operations were hampered by road blocks and heavy rains, making rescue difficult.
Tragedy again hit J&K again on August 14, and witnessed a cloudburst in Kishtwar district. Each day saw the number of injured and dead people rising & those missing still unaccounted for. Strong winds, heavy rainfall, lightning hailstorms and thunderstorms are known to be hindering the rescue operations. Houses and shops have been swept away causing widespread destruction.
The army, police, SDRF and local volunteers continue to save people, and also providing the much needed medical aid and temporary shelters to the affected families. The rescue operations continuing and cases of people being swept away are being reported. Some of them being buried under boulders, logs and rubble.
Even neighbouring Pakistan has been hit by tragedy in Peshawar and surrounding areas.
Why are such incidents happening?
The reasons can be many and climate change definitely tops the list. The infrastructure projects also contribute to it. Continuous human activity and travel in vulnerable areas during monsoons compund to the existing problems. We all must make it a point to limit our busy travel schedules at least during the period of heavy rainfall.
