# EP-446 | “China Had 20 Minutes to Warn People”: Lobsang Sangay on Nepal–Tibet Floods

An episode of [ANI Podcast with Smita Prakash](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1646927006), 3 Sep 2026, 1 h 28 min.

Audio: https://anchor.fm/s/fa8ad6f8/podcast/play/125136780/https%3A%2F%2Fd3ctxlq1ktw2nl.cloudfront.net%2Fstaging%2F2026-8-3%2F0708df96-c22c-92a8-2d76-ce5ab99c04a1.mp3

Lobsang Sangay served as the democratically elected Sikyong, or President of the Central Tibetan Administration, from 2011 to 2021. He became its top political leader after the Dalai Lama gave up his political authority. Born in 1968, Sangay grew up in a Tibetan refugee settlement near Darjeeling, India. He studied at Delhi University and Harvard Law School before becoming an American citizen. In this ANI Podcast with Smita Prakash, Sangay discusses the Nepal–Tibet floods and questions why China failed to issue a timely warning that could have saved hundreds of lives. He also alleges that Beijing censored videos and controlled the information coming out of Tibet. Sangay also speaks about Xi Jinping’s health, the purges within the PLA, China’s plans for Tibet, the Dalai Lama’s succession and the risk of China weaponising water. 0:00 – Introduction 1:34 – Tibet–Nepal Flash Floods 2:24 – Internet Shutdown in Tibet 4:17 – Could China Have Warned Nepal? 6:51 – Why China Is Hiding the Truth 9:02 – The Real Death Toll in Tibet 10:58 – China Blocks Journalists and Scientists 12:18 – Melting Glaciers and 2030 Warning 15:06 – Dams, Earthquakes and AI Data Centres 23:51 – Nepal’s Rescue Efforts 28:12 – China’s Information-Control Playbook 30:16 – International Water-Sharing Laws 34:38 – China’s Mega-Dam on Brahmaputra 36:52 – India–China Ties and Tibet 39:17 – China’s Claims Over Arunachal 43:15 – Purge of PLA Generals 46:00 – Xi Jinping’s Health 48:23 – Xi Jinping’s Succession Problem 52:12 – China’s Ethnic Unity Law 56:12 – Chinese Police Station 58:31 – Dalai Lama’s Succession 1:02:32 – Will There Be Two Dalai Lamas? 1:12:17 – Chinese Pressure on Nepal 1:14:59 – Tibet’s Future 1:22:29 – Nepal Rejects Foreign Rescue Teams 1:25:27 – The Human and Economic Cost 1:27:05 – Conclusion

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