An Inception Meeting and Brainstorming discussion were convened to inaugurate the project titled “Assessing Health of the High Altitude Lake (HAL) Tenbawa and Ecosystem Sustainability in Response to Changing Climate in the Lachung Valley, Sikkim Himalaya.” The meeting was held on 8th July 2024 at Barad Sadan, Sikkim University in Gangtok.

This initiative is spearheaded by the Department of Geography, Nagaland University and is funded by the National Mission on Himalayan Studies (NMHS), under the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC), the PRO, NU informed in a press release.

Dr. Manasi Debnath, Assistant Professor at the Department of Geography, Nagaland University, serves as the Project Investigator. She specializes in Climate Change and its impact on the Himalayan Cryosphere, including glaciers, glacial lakes, rock glaciers, and permafrost. Her expertise also encompasses Palaeoclimate and Geochronology, Environmental Hazards, and Geomorphology.

Key stakeholders and project investigators from various institutions were in attendance, including representatives from Nagaland University (NU), Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), GBPNIHE-Arunachal Pradesh, as well as stakeholders from Sikkim University, Sikkim Department of Science and Technology (Sikkim DST), Sikkim State Disaster Management Authority, local inhabitants from North Sikkim, and research scholars.