New Delhi: The water spread area of glacial lakes within India has increased by over 27 per cent between 2011 and July 2025, according to a new report by the Central Water Commission (CWC) that analysed 55 glacial lakes.
The Monthly Monitoring Report of Glacial Lakes and Water Bodies in the Himalayan Region (July 2025) revealed that the total glacial lake area in India expanded from 1,952 hectares in 2011 to 2,496 hectares in July 2025.
The study assessed 100 glacial lakes across Ladakh, Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Sikkim, and Arunachal Pradesh. Of these, 58 lakes showed an increase in water spread area during July 2025.
“There is a 27.87 per cent increase in area. Out of the 100 glacial lakes, only 55 were considered for this analysis, as 40 Supraglacial Debris Cover (SDC) lakes lacked inventory details and some were unanalysed or merged during July 2025,” the report stated.
The lakes identified for vigorous monitoring include those in Ladakh (8), Jammu and Kashmir (7), Himachal Pradesh (5), Uttarakhand (6), Sikkim (28), and Arunachal Pradesh (4).
The CWC’s broader monitoring found that the total area of glacial lakes and water bodies in the Himalayan region rose from 5,29,116 hectares in 2011 to 5,61,014 hectares in 2025, marking an overall 6.03 per cent increase.
Using Sentinel-1 and Sentinel-2 satellite imagery processed through Google Earth Engine, the analysis classified glacial lakes based on the degree of change in their water spread — significant increase (above 40%), moderate increase (up to 40%), no change, decrease, or not analysed due to cloud cover or frozen conditions.
The report, prepared by the Morphology and Climate Change Directorate of the CWC under the Ministry of Jal Shakti, is part of the Commission’s ongoing glacial lake assessment in the Indian Himalayan region.
Under its expanded network, the CWC monitored 2,843 glacial lakes and water bodies in July 2025 — including 581 within India and 1,360 in trans-boundary regions across the Indus, Ganga, and Brahmaputra basins.
Among the newly monitored lakes listed in the Glacial Lake Atlas 2023, the combined water spread area in India rose by 7.74 per cent, from 11,963 hectares in 2021 to 12,890 hectares in 2025. In the trans-boundary region, the increase was 5.77 per cent, from 44,409 hectares to 46,971 hectares over the same period.
In total, 471 glacial lakes within India showed an increase in water spread area in July 2025.
