Water tower of Asia
Also called: Third Pole · Topic: Drainage System of India: Rivers, Basins and Patterns · NCERT: Class 7, Ch 1 "Geographical Diversity of India"; Class 8, Ch 1 "Natural Resources and Their Use"
Meaning
"Water tower of Asia" is a name for the Himalaya and the Tibetan Plateau. Their glaciers and snowfields together form the largest mass of ice outside the polar regions. That is why the area is also called the Third Pole. The ice melts slowly and keeps great rivers flowing even in the dry season. According to ICIMOD (2019), these rivers serve about 2 billion people. Fast glacier melt from a warming climate threatens this water supply.
Example
The Gangotri glacier in Uttarkashi district, Uttarakhand, feeds the Bhagirathi at its snout, Gaumukh (3,900 m). The glacier is retreating, which worries planners about the Ganga's future flow.
Related concepts
- Himalayan drainage system
- Antecedent river
- Indo-Brahma river
- Indus-Ganga water divide
- Mansarovar and Rakas Tal