The Centre has asked Himalayan states and Jammu & Kashmir to tighten their defences against glacial lake outburst floods (GLOFs) and snow avalanches. Union Home Secretary Govind Mohan chaired a review meeting in New Delhi on 3 September 2026, days after flash floods in Nepal killed hundreds of people and left thousands missing. For homeowners in hill states, the review is also a reminder to check a quieter question: whether the house itself carries any insurance against these disasters.
What the Home Secretary Told the States
According to the official press release from the Ministry of Home Affairs, the meeting brought together the chief secretaries and state disaster management authorities of Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Sikkim, Arunachal Pradesh and Jammu & Kashmir, along with senior officers of the NDMA, Central Water Commission, India Meteorological Department and the Defence Geoinformatics Research Establishment.
The review examined early warning systems, monitoring of vulnerable glacial lakes and snow-covered areas, identification of high-risk locations and flow paths, and evacuation readiness. The Home Secretary stressed that preparedness “must move beyond response-oriented measures towards risk-informed planning, preventive mitigation and community-level preparedness”. States were told to find gaps in their warning and evacuation arrangements before the next extreme event, not after it. He also asked them to speed up GLOF mitigation projects the Central Government sanctioned in 2024.
Source: PIB India on X
The Damage Record that Prompted the Review
The Himalayan belt has given the government reasons to worry. On the night of 3-4 October 2023, South Lhonak Lake in Sikkim burst after a landslide crashed into it. The flood destroyed the 1,200 MW Teesta III dam at Chungthang, killed 55 people, left 74 missing and caused damage along 385 km of the Teesta valley. Himachal Pradesh lost an estimated ₹12,000 crore in the 2023 monsoon and another ₹4,465 crore in 2025, when 386 people died, according to its State Disaster Management Authority.
Very little of this loss came back through insurance. An SBI Research estimate put India’s protection gap at 92 per cent, meaning barely 8 per cent of disaster losses were insured. Most hill-state homes carry no cover at all, and homes bought without a bank loan almost never do, since lenders are usually the only ones who insist on a policy.
What a Standard Home Policy Actually Covers
Since April 2021, every general insurer has had to offer the Bharat Griha Raksha, IRDAI’s standard home insurance product. Its named perils read like a checklist of Himalayan hazards: earthquake, storm, cyclone, tsunami, flood and inundation, subsidence, landslide, rockslide, and forest or jungle fire, alongside fire, riot, terrorism and impact damage. Water and debris from a GLOF would ordinarily fall under the flood, inundation, landslide and rockslide perils. The policy also skips the usual underinsurance penalty, so a claim is not cut proportionately if the declared sum insured turns out lower than the rebuild cost.
Avalanche damage needs more caution. An avalanche is not separately listed among the standard Bharat Griha Raksha insured events. So homeowners in avalanche-prone areas should not assume that a standard policy covers snow-avalanche damage. Check the insurer’s exact policy wording and schedule, including any additional or optional covers, before buying the policy. Some enhanced home products have specific snow-related extensions, but these should not be treated as part of the standard cover.
Exclusions that Matter in the Hills
The landslide peril excludes damage caused by river erosion, defective design or workmanship, and construction or excavation work nearby. A riverbank home eaten away slowly by the Teesta or the Beas may not have a valid claim, even though a sudden flood over the same ground would. After a disaster, insurers typically need the policy number, photographs or video of the damage, a list of destroyed contents and repair estimates; a surveyor then assesses the loss. Keeping policy papers backed up digitally matters in a region where the originals can wash away with the house.
| Most homeowners discover what their policy excludes only after a claim fails. MyRupia’s expert policy review checks an existing home or property policy clause by clause, including how it treats flood, landslide and avalanche damage, so gaps surface before a disaster does, not after. |
Disclaimer: This MyRupia article is for informational purposes only and is based on publicly available government, regulatory and industry sources. It should not be treated as investment, financial, tax, insurance, or legal advice. Information, examples, market data, and expert views mentioned in the article may change over time and should not be considered a recommendation to buy, sell, invest in, or surrender any financial product. Readers should evaluate their individual circumstances and consult a qualified financial professional before making decisions.