Jagannath Panda
In early January, a powerful 6.8 magnitude earthquake struck the remote Dingri county (Shigatse) on the Tibetan Plateau, generating thousands of aftershocks within the first three days. The ripple effects were felt in neighboring Bhutan, India, and Nepal. It was the most severe earthquake to impact the Himalayan region in the past century. Media observers have argued that this natural disaster may serve as an indicator of the deleterious effects of China’s unsustainable exploitation of Tibetan ecological resources to satisfy its domestic developmental imperatives.
Days before the earthquake, in late December, China had announced plans to build one of the largest hydroprojects in the world on Tibet’s Yarlung Tsangpo River, triggering strong opposition from neighboring Himalayan states and the Tibetan community. Beijing’s relentless pursuit of large-scale infrastructure projects in Tibet – under the guise of economic development – is exacerbating the region’s environmental fragility. Critics argue that such projects, particularly in an ecologically sensitive and seismically active zone, not only threaten local ecosystems but may also contribute to heightened seismic risks. The question, then, is whether China’s unchecked exploitation of Tibet’s natural resources is not just an environmental crisis in the making but a direct catalyst for disaster.
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