Glacial lake is a water body formed in/under/besides and/or in front of a glacier due to glacial dynamics. Such high-altitude glacial lakes are hazardous to humanity and infrastructure as they can drain instantaneous and create devastating floods in the downstream. The formation of moraine-dammed glacial lakes and glacial lake outburst flood (GLOF) is major concern in countries such as Bhutan, Tibet (China), India, Nepal and Pakistan.

Here the authors report the field evidences observed at Milam glacier, Goriganga basin, Kumaon Himalaya during the glaciological expedition carried out in July 2011 and the observations from Resourcesat-2 LISS IV data. (Correspondence)

The Himalaya is the adobe of one of the world’s largest and mostly inaccessible area of glaciers outside the polar regions and provides glacier-stored water to the major Indian river basins. Various studies suggest that many of the Himalayan glaciers have receded in recent decades due to climate forcing. Temporal satellite data analysis shows that the Milam Glacier in Goriganga Basin, Kumaon Himalaya receded 1328 m laterally and 90 m vertically during 1954–2006.