The lush green forests and snow-clad peaks of Kashmir might given an impression that the Valley is free from pollution, but the experts point out that Kashmir has three times more black carbon in the atmosphere than neighbouring states.

 As a consequence, the presence of high concentration of black carbon is being cited as a major reason for the melting and shrinking of glaciers in the region, 20 percent which have vanished in the last six decades.

 “The glaciers in the region are melting at a faster pace than the other glaciers in the rest of the Indian Himalayas. We are studying this but so far we have found that black carbon levels are three times more than the atmosphere in other neighbouring states,” said Shakil Romshoo, head of department of earth sciences, Kashmir University............Read more

Source web page: