It is situated in the lap of Mount Kanchenjunga and said to have a length of 16 miles. Many people believe that this glacier acts as a source of River Teesta. It lies on the eastern portion of the Kanchenjunga and feeds water to a number of rivers as it melts. We had heard about the Teesta River because it was in the news as a result of the proposal of construction of a 3,500 MW hydroelectric power plant across the river. The locals informed us that the plans regarding the power plant is currently in ruins as the zone is extremely prone to earthquakes.
It has a number of lateral moraine type ridges on both sides which have a height off around 150 feet. Some people say that the ridges are a result of the Little Ice Age period. Scientists have also reported that many tributaries arising from the glacier have vanished in the past few years. One of the locals informed us that the melting takes place at a rapid pace in the lower portion of the glacier which is actually an ablation section.
According to the local residents, the Zemu Glacier has been facing the problem of slow but sure thinning every year. Some of the images captured constantly over the years show that the position of some selected spots have changed continuously thereby indicating that the Glacier has been retreating.