Inventory of Glacier Basins in Himachal Himalaya

Himachal Pradesh has over 80% of mountain terrain. The inventory of glacier in such a terrain is carried out by the Remote Sensing Techniques (RST). About 10% of the lotal mountainous area in the Himachal Himalaya is covered with permanent snow and ice. The whole mountainous area has been divided into six basins as defined by the outlet of the glaciers. Six hundred and one glaciers have been identified in these basins. Studies show that the distribution of these glaciers is uneven. Majority of glaciers are concentrated in the Chandra-Bhagha (200), Beas-Parvati (80), Ravi (54), Malung (40), Spiti (159) and Satluj (68) basins. The summer snow line fluctuates between 4000 to 5000 m (mst). The total area of these basins is about 48,034 sq km, of which 4,516 sq km is covered by permanent snow. Hence, the total mountainous area of Himachal consists of about 60% of seasonal snow cover and 10% area is permanent snow and ice covered, the remaining 30% area is snow-free in the lower altitudes.