Families evacuated from ‘sinking’ Joshimath, Uttarakhand CM to visit tomorrow amid panic

The Uttarakhand government started evacuating families in Joshimath on Thursday after days of local protests, where hundreds of homes are in danger of collapsing due to developing significant cracks.
 
District authorities carried out rescue and relief operations, and residents whose homes had developed noticeable cracks as a result of landslides were relocated to night shelters. Nearly 47 families have been evacuated to safer locations, officials told news agency PTI.
 
The state government has assembled a team of experts to investigate the cause of land subsidence in the Himalayan town of Joshimath, which has caused significant damage to buildings and roads.

 
As widespread panic and fear grips the populace, Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami stated that the situation in Joshimath is being closely monitored and that he will visit the area to assess the situation.

 
“I will hold a high-level meeting with top officials in Dehradun this evening regarding landslides in Joshimath and cracks in houses. I will visit Joshimath tomorrow and take stock of the situation. A team from BJP has also been sent there,” said Dhami.

 
The town of Joshimath, which is situated en route to Badrinath and Hemkund Sahib at an elevation of 6,000 feet in Uttarakhand's Chamoli district, is in high-risk seismic "Zone-V." According to District Disaster Management Officer NK Joshi, 561 houses have so far developed cracks in various parts of the town, including 153 in Ravigram, 127 in Gandhinagar, 71 in Manoharbagh, 52 in Singhdhar, 50 in Parsari, 29 in Upper Bazar, 27 in Suneel, 28 in Marwadi, and 24 in Lower Bazar.
 
Locals in Joshimath took to the streets on Wednesday night carrying torches to protest the town's deteriorating housing stock, which they blamed in part on a nearby public energy project that is currently being built.
 
As the town observed a bandh to protest against administrative indifference to the plight of residents and the "NTPC projects which have led to its gradual sinking," this was followed by yet another round of protests on Thursday against an "idle administration."
 
The community is calling for immediate rehabilitation, stopping work on an NTPC tunnel and a bypass road between Helang and Marwadi for Badrinath, and blaming the Tapovan-Vishnugad hydroelectric project for the disaster.
 
The Chamoli administration decided to halt all construction work in and around the "sinking" town on Thursday despite protests. Additionally, it has been requested that the NTPC and the Hindustan Construction Company (HCC) each construct 2,000 prefabricated homes in advance for the impacted families.
 
The district administration has also put a stop to other construction projects being carried out by the municipality and the Border Roads Organisation (BRO), as well as the Tapovan-Vishnugad hydroelectric project, with immediate effect pending further orders.
 

Also Read: Joshimath 'sinking': Uttarakhand CM Pushkar Singh Dhami to hold high-level meet; other top developments

Also Read: 'Cracks increasing every hour': Panic grips Joshimath; Auli ropeway service suspended, NDRF on alert