London, June 10: The melting of Himalayan glaciers due to global warming will lead to massive human migration in India which is dependent on river systems generated by these glaciers, said a report released Wednesday.
The report claims the melting of the glaciers, also known as 'Water Towers of Asia' will bring perils to poor section of the populations dependent on the river systems in India,
China, Pakistan and other Asian countries by the year 2050.
"To Hindus the Ganges is sacred and is personified in Mother Ganga, representative of life giving maternal waters.
Changes in the rivers and livelihoods dependent on them could bring profound economic, cultural and demographic impacts," the report warns.
Titled 'In Search of Shelter: Mapping the Effects of Climate Change on Human Migration and Displacement', the report announced in Bonn, Germany, says ongoing melting of the
glaciers will devastate heavily irrigated farmlands of Asia by increasing floods and decreasing long-term water supplies.
The glacier-fed basins of the Ganges, Brahmaputra, Irawaddy, Salween, Mekong, Yangtze and Yellow rivers now support over 1.4 billion people in India, Pakistan, China,
Bangladesh and other neighbouring countries.
The report is based on a first global survey of environmental change and migration, researchers claim.
Bureau Report
First Published: Wednesday, June 10, 2009, 13:23