Is China to Blame for the China-Nepal Border Disaster? Indian Host Leaves Chinese ‘Wolf Warrior’ Rattled

A heated Indian television debate over a deadly flood on the China-Nepal border has gone viral after Chinese commentator Gao Zhikai clashed with host Arnab Goswami, known in Taiwan as the “Indian Pao Chieh.”

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This is extremely cold-hearted. We are a downstream country, so this has a great deal to do with us. Hundreds of Indians have also died.

The disaster began on Aug. 26 when a glacier on Nepal’s side of the Himalayas collapsed near Langtang Lirung. The falling ice shattered on impact and became a torrent more than 30 meters high, carrying meltwater, rocks and mud through a narrow valley. The flood crossed into China, struck the Lhende River and hit the Gyirong border port in Tibet before a landslide briefly blocked the river and created a barrier lake. The lake then burst under pressure, sending water back toward downstream Nepal along the Trishuli River and toward India’s border.

By Aug. 31, China and Nepal had confirmed at least 955 deaths and nearly 4,500 missing people. Citizens of both countries, as well as foreign tourists, were affected. India counted among the hardest-hit foreign groups, and parts of its border region also felt the impact.

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I am about to say something that will completely expose him.

The program’s Indian guests argued that the disaster reflected both climate change and intensive development on the Chinese side of the Himalayas, including road and rail projects, power lines, hydropower stations, excavation and reservoir construction. They also criticized the lack of immediate cross-border warnings to Nepal and India, saying downstream communities had less chance to respond.

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We will use our rivers, turn them into weapons, to attack and target India.

Gao rejected India’s involvement, arguing that only China and Nepal had the right to address the disaster because their territories directly bordered the affected area. Other guests called that position cold-hearted, pointing out that India was a downstream country and that hundreds of Indians had died. Goswami repeatedly stopped Gao from interrupting before confronting him over earlier remarks about turning rivers into weapons against India. Gao denied the host’s account, while Goswami accused him of making threats. The confrontation spread widely online.

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But that is exactly what you are doing! How do I know you did not use water against the Nepalese? Because that is what you said in Pakistan, Gao Zhikai!