Land subsidence continues to pose a major problem in the sinking town of Joshimath as 131 families have been evacuated from their own homes after they developed cracks and were marked “unsafe”. All construction works were banned by the Uttarakhand government some time ago and 723 buildings were identified as being at risk.
Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami paid a late-night visit to relief camps in the area on Wednesday and interacted with affected people who were brought there. His visit came even as people continued protests demanding compensation ahead of their homes being razed.
On Thursday morning too, he was in Joshimath and interacted with the media. He said, “I have prayed to God to save all from this problem of sinking. We all must believe that our Joshimath will come out of this.”
An interim assistance of Rs 1.5 lakh is being given to the affected people and details of relief and rehabilitation are being worked out, Dhami said. Compensation will be given in accordance with the market rate, which will be ascertained after taking all the stakeholders into confidence.
It has so far been decided that two hotels – Malari Inn and Mount View – will be demolished, as major cracks have surfaced on its walls and they are leaning towards each other.
Here are key updates on the Joshimath crisis:
- Chief Justice Satish Chandra Sharma heard the Joshimath sinking crisis matter on Tuesday in the Supreme Court. The plea filed, seeks the declaration of the land subsidence issue in Joshimath as a “natural disaster”.
- Around 25 to 28 Army infrastructures are also affected in Joshimath. CM Dhami said that jawans have been shifted and the civil administration have also been provided shelter.
- The work of the bypass road in Joshimath has been halted. “Our accessibility to forward areas and operational readiness has not been affected. We will provide all assistance to the local administration,” said General Manoj Pande.
- A team of experts from CSIR-National Geophysical Research Institute (NGRI) will be leaving for Joshimath to conduct subsurface physical mapping of the affected town, a senior scientist has said.
- CM Dhami fixed the rate of transparent distribution of interim package and rehabilitation package to the families affected by landslides. An interim assistance of Rs 1.5 lakh is being given to the affected people and details of relief and rehabilitation are being worked out.
- An 11-member committee is constituted for transparent distribution of immediate interim assistance to the affected people in Joshimath and to decide the rate of rehabilitation package, said Chamoli DM Himanshu Khurana
- All in all, an amount of Rs 45 crores has been released from the government for the special rehabilitation package and grant for the displacement of the affected people, an ANI report said.
- He held key meetings on Thursday with the Army, ITBP and NDRF officials. He will also meet scientists from various establishments engaged in the investigation of landslides.
- Union Home Minister Amit Shah met ministers Nitin Gadkari, Bhupender Yadav, Gajendra Shekhawat and other officials from the north and south block to discuss the Joshimath land subsidence issue.
- A 19-member committee, headed by Chamoli District Magistrate Himanshu Khurana, has been formed for the distribution of the package amount among the affected families and ascertaining the rate of a rehabilitation package.
- CM Dhami met locals in Joshimath who were affected by the land subsidence and were shifted to temporary relief camps. “We stand with the people of Joshimath. The prime minister is personally monitoring the situation. I have his full support. Their (affected people) interest will be taken care of,” he said.
- Meenakshi Sundaram, the secretary to the chief minister, met the protesters and assured them that adequate compensation, in accordance with the market rate, will be given.
- The process of demolishing two “unsafe” hotels in Joshimath began on Thursday evening with an agreement between the administration and the property owners who had stalled the exercise for the last two days demanding compensation. Hotels Malari Inn and Mount View had developed cracks and were precariously leaning towards each other posing a threat to the settlements around them, officials said.
- The Uttarakhand High Court asked the state government on Thursday to formulate a robust plan for subsidence-hit Joshimath town in Chamoli district. Hearing a PIL on the crisis, a division bench of Chief Justice Vipin Sanghi and Justice Alok Kumar Verma directed the government to form a committee of independent experts to look into the matter. The court said the committee must include Disaster Management Authority CEO Piyush Rautela and Executive Director, Space Application Centre, MPS Bisht. The committee will submit its report to the court in a sealed envelope within two months, the bench said.
- Uttarakhand Chief Secretary SS Sandhu had on Monday said that dilapidated houses that have developed huge cracks should be razed soon so that they do not cause further damage.
(with PTI inputs)
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