New Delhi, Aug 29: Nepal’s devastating flash floods serve as a reminder of the urgent need for regional collaboration, where countries under the shadow of the mighty Himalayas need to adopt a diplomatic narrative that includes ecological security as an important part of relationships, exert reports.

Popular Nepali newspaper Kantipur Friday observed that it is time for Kathmandu to immediately start working on disaster diplomacy and on the agreement with Beijing on its “implementation modality” and “framework”.

Incidentally, China and Nepal had agreed to share cross-border real-time information on floods and landslides and flag potential risks of glacial lake outburst floods. However, no formal agreement has been signed yet to implement such a mechanism despite Nepal Foreign Minister Shisir Khanal having raised the issue during his China visit in May.

Such reports emphasised the need for sharing information and cooperation in disaster reduction, where long-term risks should be taken into account in the construction of strategic structures such as roads, bridges, and hydropower projects near international borders.

Parliamentarians from across the Hindu Kush Himalaya (HKH) region too had insisted on Wednesday, as news of the devastation emerged, that the tragedy underscored the urgent need for stronger regional cooperation to address climate risks that transcend national boundaries.

They were meeting for the two-day 2nd Hindu Kush Himalaya Parliamentarians’ Meet in Thimphu, where a moment of silence for the victims and their families was also observed, according to the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD), an intergovernmental knowledge and learning centre working on behalf of the people of the HKH.

Participants said the disaster highlighted the importance of collective action, stronger preparedness, and sustained regional cooperation to reduce climate-related risks and build resilience across the HKH region. ICIMOD is based in Kathmandu, and works in and for eight regional member countries – Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, China, India, Myanmar, Nepal, and Pakistan. The body later examined satellite imagery and concluded that “a massive rock–ice avalanche occurred in Nepal, blocking the Lhende River and triggering cascading floods downstream”.

Their assessment pointed not to tectonic activity but to glacial instability, a phenomenon increasingly linked to climate change. This was corroborated by the US Geological Survey (USGS), which earlier took the tremor as an earthquake.

In a revised statement, the USGS stated that additional analysis of seismic waves and satellite imagery led to the determination that the seismic event was rather a glacial collapse and debris flow, and that no earthquake had occurred. Global warming and construction in nearby areas are largely being seen as the reason for the avalanche, though the actual reason may take some time to be identified, pointed reports.

Some experts compared such glaciers on mountains to cement that helps hold a building together. Mongabay, a US-based non-profit conservation and environmental science news platform, also said that the floods were triggered by a glacier collapse and landslide into a river on the Tibet-Nepal border.

Like other reports, it assumed climate change had loosened the ice “till the entire mountainside, including a glacier clinging to it, collapsed into the river flowing some 3,000 metres below”.

Pointing out that no early warning system would have helped those who were close downstream when the huge chunk and debris fell on Wednesday, the article stated that one way to manage this risk is to be able to predict such a disaster with a credible probability level, so that governments can take protective action. This, it emphasised, would need countries to comprehensively map all icebound slopes above a certain gradient. In the face of such reports, the HKH countries would need to step up research, share data, and coordinate seamlessly to be prepared for such calamities.

New Delhi, Aug 29: The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) on Saturday stated that four more Indian nationals were rescued from a hydropower project in Nepal’s Rasuwa, bringing the total number of rescued Indian nationals to 88.

The ministry confirmed that the rescued individuals are Ripu Kumar, Chaneshwar Narzary, Kripa Shankar and Mohammed Minhajuddin.

The MEA also stated that 120 Indian nationals crossed into Nepal from China on Saturday.

It mentioned that 287 Indian nationals still remain missing and 128 persons of Indian origin also remain missing as of 5 pm on Saturday.

A six-member forensic experts team from India is expected to reach Kathmandu on Saturday to assist in the analysis of DNA samples for identification of mortal remains.

“A specialised technical team for tunnel rescue reconnaissance reached Kathmandu yesterday and started working from today to assist in tunnel rescue in the impacted area. Based on their recommendation, a specialised tunnel rescue team from India with equipment is expected to reach Nepal today,” MEA stated.

Meanwhile, Nepal President Ramchandra Paudel on Saturday expressed gratitude to President Droupadi Murmu for her concern and the support extended by the government of India following the devastating flash floods in Nepal that left hundreds dead and caused widespread destruction.

“On behalf of the Government and the people of Nepal, I extend our deepest gratitude to Your Excellency Smt Droupadi Murmu for your kind concern and also for the generous support and solidarity extended by your government following the recent calamity in Nepal,” the Office of the President of Nepal posted on X.

Paudel also conveyed condolences over the tragic loss of Indian lives in the aftermath of the catastrophic flood on Wednesday.

“We also offer our heartfelt condolences and profound sympathy to the Government and the people of India for the tragic loss of Indian lives in the disaster of August 26, 2026,” he stated.

New Delhi, Aug 29: Leader of Opposition (LoP) Rahul Gandhi on Saturday demanded that Prime Minister Narendra Modi direct the filing of an FIR against those allegedly involved in the “shuddhikaran” or purification of the Ramlila ground in Haldwani after Congress National President Mallikarjun Kharge addressed a public meeting there.

Describing the controversy as part of a larger battle between two competing ideologies — the Constitution on one side and the views of the RSS-BJP on the other, Gandhi said that the Congress chief should get justice and urged the government to initiate action under the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act.

Addressing a press conference, Gandhi said, “Whatever politics is taking place in the country today is, in one way or another, a contest between these two ideologies.”

Gandhi alleged that Dalit individuals face greater attacks as they achieve success and cited several instances to support his claim.

“The more successful a Dalit person becomes, the more forcefully they are attacked. This happens to millions of people every day. When our Rajasthan Congress CLP, Tikaram Julie, goes to a temple, BJP leaders perform purification rituals. When Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge goes to Haldwani’s Ramlila Maidan to deliver a speech, purification rituals are performed there. When former Bihar Chief Minister Jitan Ram Manjhi goes to a temple, purification rituals are performed there too,” he said.

“This is done by BJP-RSS members, and it is a crime under the Indian Constitution. The word ‘Shuddhikaran (purification)’ is just another word for untouchability,” the LoP stated.

Gandhi said that Kharge had addressed a rally at the Haldwani Ramlila Maidan on August 8, following which BJP-RSS members allegedly carried out the purification of the platform on August 10, and the Uttarakhand BJP chief had allegedly described it as the “right thing to do”.

The Congress leader said that despite what he described as the purification being a crime under the SC/ST Act, around 20 days had passed without any action being taken against those responsible.

“Our demand is that an FIR be filed against those who carried out purification in Uttarakhand. Narendra Modi says he belongs to every caste, but the BJP chief in Uttarakhand is saying that the purification was done rightly,” he said.

Gandhi urged the Prime Minister Modi to direct authorities to initiate proceedings under the SC/ST Act against those allegedly involved in the incident.

“We want that Prime Minister Modi should order that action be taken under the SC/ST Act against those who carried out purification. Today the fight is between the Constitution and the ideology of the BJP-RSS, and the purification incident reflects their mentality,” he said.

“The BJP-RSS do not want the Dalits of the country to progress, succeed, and live with dignity. In other words, there is a clear difference between their words and actions,” he added.

Gandhi said the issue was not limited to Kharge but concerned Dalits across the country, warning that the alleged incident should be viewed in the wider context of discrimination.

“This isn’t just an issue for Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge, but it concerns every Dalit in India. If our National President can be treated like this so openly and without hesitation, imagine what might be happening to a child in school? This is unacceptable to us. Our fight is against the ideology of the BJP-RSS, which promotes discrimination and inequality,” Gandhi added.

“We will ensure action is taken against the culprits. Even if the BJP fails to act, the entire Congress party will not let that man escape – I guarantee it,” he asserted.