Wed Feb 26 07:17:54 UTC 2025: ## Himalayan Glaciers’ Fate a Pressing Concern: Activist Urges Modi’s Leadership
**New Delhi, Feb 26, 2025** – Climate activist Sonam Wangchuk, fresh from a U.S. tour highlighting the rapid melting of Himalayan glaciers, has issued a stark warning and a plea to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Wangchuk, who carried a piece of glacial ice from Ladakh to the U.S. as a symbol of the crisis, claims that inaction could lead to the drying up of major rivers, rendering future Maha Kumbh pilgrimages impossible.
Wangchuk’s tour included stops at the UN in Delhi and New York, Harvard Kennedy School, and MIT, culminating in the immersion of the ice at the confluence of the Hudson and East Rivers. He presented the ice as a symbolic message illustrating the alarming rate of glacial melt. The UN has designated 2025 as the International Year of Glaciers’ Preservation.
In an open letter to PM Modi and a subsequent press conference, Wangchuk stressed the urgency of the situation. He noted that the Himalayas, often called the “Third Pole,” hold the Earth’s third largest deposit of ice and snow after the Arctic and Antarctic. He highlighted studies showing significant glacial lake expansion and potential 80% volume loss if global warming isn’t addressed.
Wangchuk, while commending Modi’s environmental initiatives like ‘Mission LiFE’, urged the creation of a commission to assess the condition of Himalayan glaciers and the declaration of major glaciers as national treasures. He also proposed specific policies for their protection. Further, he requested an audience with the Prime Minister to present a symbolic ice block, conveying a message from the climate-affected people of Ladakh. His ultimate goal is to present similar ice blocks to world leaders throughout the International Year of Glaciers’ Preservation. He believes India should lead the global effort in preserving these vital water sources.
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