The breathtaking landscapes of Gilgit-Baltistan, which are referred to as the water tower of Pakistan, are under severe threat due to rising global carbon emissions and consequently climate change.

Almost 30 percent of GB’s terrain is dominated by the glacial mountains and another 40 percent is blanketed by the seasonal snow. GB serves as the primary freshwater resource of the country. However, accelerating glacier melt has triggered a surge in climate-induced disasters such as landslides, devastating flash floods, glacial lake outbursts, avalanches, etc., putting both lives and infrastructure at risk.

The frozen reservoirs of GB are shrinking at an alarming rate and this melting has not only disrupted the supplies of water but intensified the frequency and severity of disaster events. The real worry is not that glaciers are melting, they are melting faster than anticipations. This seriously calls for urgent action otherwise consequences will be catastrophic for GB as well as for downstream Pakistan.

Spotting the mounting threats, the GB Disaster Management Authority was established some 8 years ago in 2017 to streamline the response efforts and disaster risk reduction. However, the region continues to suffer from natural calamities, and victims of recent landslides, and floods claim that disaster-handling efforts remain sluggish and uncoordinated. Structural and non-structural inefficiencies both have hampered the GB-DMA effectiveness, leaving communities highly........

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