Nepal wants climate compensation, putting major emitters on the hook

Environment & Disaster Management · 6 September 2026 · Based on The Hindu (original report)

2-minute summary

Following a catastrophic glacial collapse and subsequent flash floods on August 26, 2026, in Nepal's Nuwakot district, the country's leadership raised critical questions regarding global climate justice. Nepal's Foreign Minister, Shisir Khanal, initially called for climate compensation from major global emitters, pointing out that Nepal is paying the ultimate price for a crisis it did not create. Although he later clarified that Nepal was not making a formal bilateral legal claim against specific nations like India, China, or the US, the incident has reignited the global debate on climate liability versus charity. Despite contributing a negligible 0.1% of global greenhouse gas emissions and actively generating renewable hydropower, Nepal is highly vulnerable. The Hindu Kush Himalayas, known as the 'Third Pole', are warming at nearly twice the global average, causing glaciers to melt at ten times their historical rates and triggering frequent, devastating flash floods.

Why it's in the news

In September 2026, Nepal's leadership highlighted the urgent need for climate justice and compensation following a devastating glacial collapse and flash floods in Nuwakot district. This event underscores the disproportionate vulnerability of the Hindu Kush Himalayan region to rapid global warming despite its minimal contribution to global emissions.

Background and context

The Hindu Kush Himalaya (HKH) region, often called the 'Third Pole', contains the largest volume of ice and snow outside the polar regions and feeds ten major river basins that sustain nearly two billion people. Research indicates that the Third Pole is warming at nearly double the global average rate, leading to accelerated glacial retreat and an increased frequency of Glacial Lake Outburst Floods (GLOFs). At the international level, the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) has increasingly focused on 'Loss and Damage' (L&D)—the harms caused by climate change that cannot be avoided through adaptation or mitigation. While COP27 agreed to establish a dedicated Loss and Damage Fund and COP28 operationalized it, securing adequate, predictable, and liability-based funding remains a major hurdle for vulnerable, low-emitting developing nations like Nepal.

Constitutional provisions

• Article 21 — The Supreme Court of India has expanded the Right to Life to include the right to a clean, healthy, and pollution-free environment, which aligns with the domestic legal basis for climate justice.
• Article 51-A(g) — Establishes a Fundamental Duty for every citizen of India to protect and improve the natural environment, including forests, lakes, rivers, and wildlife.

Committees and reports

• IPCC Sixth Assessment Report (AR6) — Highlighted that mountain ecosystems, particularly the Hindu Kush Himalayas, face irreversible risks from rapid glacier retreat and loss of permafrost.
• ICIMOD Report: Water, Ice, Society, and Ecosystems in the Hindu Kush Himalaya — Documented that glaciers in the HKH melted 65% faster in the 2011-2020 decade compared to the previous decade, warning of severe downstream water insecurity.

Government schemes

• National Mission for Sustaining the Himalayan Ecosystem (NMSHE) — One of the eight missions under India's National Action Plan on Climate Change (NAPCC), aimed at monitoring glacier health and safeguarding the Himalayan ecological system.

International organisations

• UNFCCC (United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change) — The primary international treaty body negotiating global climate action, including the operationalization of the Loss and Damage Fund.
• ICIMOD (International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development) — An intergovernmental knowledge and learning centre serving eight regional countries of the Hindu Kush Himalayas to address climate vulnerabilities.

Previous UPSC questions on this theme

• Mains GS-3 2021 — Describe the major outcomes of the 26th session of the Conference of the Parties (COP) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). What are the commitments made by India in this conference?

Mains practice: The concept of climate justice shifts the discourse of climate action from charity to liability and human rights. In light of the rising climate vulnerabilities in the Hindu Kush Himalayan region, analyze the challenges in securing climate compensation for developing nations.

Climate justice demands that the historical emitters of greenhouse gases bear the financial and moral responsibility for climate-induced disasters in vulnerable, low-emitting nations. The recent catastrophic glacial collapse and flash floods in Nepal—a country contributing just 0.1% of global emissions—starkly highlight this ethical and economic imbalance.

**Key Challenges in Securing Climate Compensation:**

• **Attribution and Scientific Complexity:** Establishing a direct, legally binding causal link between a specific country's historical emissions and a localized extreme weather event, such as a Glacial Lake Outburst Flood (GLOF) in the Himalayas, remains scientifically and legally challenging.

• **Resistance from Major Emitters:** Developed nations have historically resisted any framework that establishes legal 'liability' or 'compensation' due to fears of unlimited financial claims. Consequently, funding mechanisms like the Loss and Damage (L&D) Fund are structured around voluntary solidarity rather than legal liability.

• **Inadequacy of Climate Finance:** While the L&D Fund was operationalized at COP28, the financial pledges remain a fraction of the actual economic losses faced by developing nations. The transition from pledges to actual disbursement is slow and bureaucratic.

• **Geopolitical Power Asymmetry:** Small, developing mountain states lack the geopolitical and economic leverage to enforce compliance or demand compensation from major emitters like the US, China, or the EU.

**Conclusion:**

To achieve true climate justice, the international community must move beyond voluntary charity. There is an urgent need to establish predictable, legally backed funding mechanisms under the UNFCCC, alongside robust regional frameworks like ICIMOD, to safeguard the fragile 'Third Pole' and its downstream populations.

Prelims practice questions

Q1. With reference to the Hindu Kush Himalayan (HKH) region, consider the following statements: 1. It is often referred to as the 'Third Pole' because it contains the largest areas of permanent ice and snow outside the polar regions. 2. The International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD) is an intergovernmental organization serving all eight countries of the HKH region. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

1. 1 only
2. 2 only
3. Both 1 and 2
4. Neither 1 nor 2

Answer: C. Both statements are correct. The HKH region is known as the Third Pole due to its vast ice reserves. ICIMOD is an independent regional intergovernmental organization serving the eight regional member countries of the HKH: Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, China, India, Myanmar, Nepal, and Pakistan.

Q2. The 'Loss and Damage Fund', often discussed in international climate negotiations, was officially operationalized during which of the following sessions of the Conference of the Parties (COP)?

1. COP29 in Baku
2. COP26 in Glasgow
3. COP27 in Sharm El-Sheikh
4. COP28 in Dubai

Answer: D. While the agreement to establish the Loss and Damage Fund was reached at COP27 in Sharm El-Sheikh (2022), the fund was officially operationalized and received its initial financial pledges at the start of COP28 in Dubai (2023).

Q3. Which of the following can trigger a Glacial Lake Outburst Flood (GLOF)? 1. Extreme precipitation events 2. Rapid melting of glaciers due to rising temperatures 3. Earthquakes causing structural failure of moraine dams 4. Ice or rock avalanches falling into glacial lakes Select the correct answer using the code given below:

1. 1 and 2 only
2. 2, 3 and 4 only
3. 1, 3 and 4 only
4. 1, 2, 3 and 4

Answer: D. All the listed factors can trigger GLOFs. Rapid glacier melt increases water volume; extreme rain adds sudden hydrostatic pressure; earthquakes can destabilize the natural moraine dams; and avalanches can create displacement waves that breach the dam.

Revision flashcards

• What is the 'Third Pole' and why is it ecologically critical? It refers to the Hindu Kush Himalayan (HKH) region, which holds the largest volume of ice and snow outside the polar regions and feeds ten major Asian river systems.
• At what rate is the Third Pole warming compared to the global average? The Hindu Kush Himalayan region is warming at nearly twice the global average rate, causing accelerated glacial retreat.
• What is Nepal's approximate contribution to global greenhouse gas emissions? Nepal contributes a negligible 0.1% of global greenhouse gas emissions, highlighting the ethical imbalance of its high climate vulnerability.
• What is 'Loss and Damage' in UNFCCC terminology? It refers to the unavoidable and irreversible impacts of climate change that cannot be addressed by mitigation or adaptation measures.
• Which Indian national mission specifically addresses Himalayan conservation? The National Mission for Sustaining the Himalayan Ecosystem (NMSHE), under the National Action Plan on Climate Change (NAPCC).