The Himalayas are often described as India’s natural fortress, its water tower, and its climatic stabiliser. But fortresses can crumble, towers can run dry, and stabilisers can fail. The increasingly bare and rocky winter face of the Himalayas is not just a visual shock; it is an early warning signal of a deeper systemic disruption that India is dangerously underprepared for. For centuries, winter snow has performed a quiet but indispensable role. It accumulated patiently, melted gradually, and fed rivers steadily through spring and summer. That rhythm is now breaking.

Winters are becoming drier, snow is falling unevenly, and what does fall is melting faster. This is not a one-off aberration but a pattern that is hardening year after year. The implications are profound. India’s major river systems do not depend only on monsoons; they depend critically on snowmelt. When winter snow declines, rivers lose their........

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