Joshimath news

Families are segregated, and pets and cattle remain unattended as people move out to safety. Many small businesses have shut shop or are in the process of doing so. The future looms dark and uncertain with residents saying they are not sure how long it will take for the earth to swallow their hometown. I have just one request from the government - provide us with a house. We just need a roof over our heads, she said, her eyes welling up. Next to a red cross, a stark contrast to the blue walls of what was once her home, is an orange sticker saying unusable. For the 65-year-old, the vivid colours are cruel irony for the gloom edging her life and that of her town. Where can we go from here? My son had a furniture business here which is now shut. My grandson used to go to school here, she said, pointing to gaping fissures that were not so long ago hairline cracks on the walls of her home. My son told me it is dangerous to live in the house as the land around the neighbourhood is sinking." Disaster response teams are on standby and officials ready plans to evacuate 40 per cent of the town if the situation worsens. Sati. however, fears all of Joshimath town might need to be evacuated as every life matters. Cracks have developed in nearly 850 buildings, including a temple and the Auli Ropeway, and on pavements and streets. An estimated 165 buildings are in danger zone. Some hotels now lean on each other. Unchecked construction flourished on its fragile slopes, which experts said ...

JOSHIMATH: With winter at its peak, tragedy couldn’t have come at a worse time for the residents of this picturesque town, situated at an elevation of over 6,000 feet and regarded as the gateway to Badrinath, Auli and Valley of Flowers. With temperatures hovering almost near the zero mark, people here are forced to battle fears about their future in the biting cold as their homes -- and lives -- crumble in front of their eyes. A spot visit by a TOI team on Sunday revealed how lives have been directly affected by the tragedy that has befallen the beleaguered town, where almost every other building has developed cracks. PM Modi dials Uttarakhand CM Dhami, promises ‘all financial and technical support’ PM Narendra Modi had a telephonic conversation with Uttarakhand chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami on Sunday morning. Dhami informed the PM about the situation in Joshimath as well as plans for rehabilitation and arrangements being made in light of several houses developing cracks amid fears that The house of Chandra Ballabh Pandey in Manoharbagh area, too, has become uninhabitable for the past two weeks. The floor of the house has swelled by 6-8 inches and the house has started leaning towards the right. With moist eyes, Pandey said, “I built my home in 1999 and now I am seeing it falling apart in front of my eyes. Even though the administration has asked me to vacate the place immediately, it is tearing me apart. My heart is in this house and will always remain so, irrespecti...

Last Updated: 9th January, 2023 22:40 IST Joshimath Tragedy LIVE Updates: Cracks Surface On 678 Buildings; 81 Families Rescued The hilly town of Uttarakhand's -- Joshimath has been declared a 'sinking zone' in the wake of continuing land subsidence with several houses, roads, and other buildings developing cracks. With authorities from PMO to the state government keeping an eye on the issue, the teams of the NDRF and SDRF have already reached the town. "Efforts underway for rehabilitation of affected people in Joshimath. We assure the safety of the people of Joshimath. I have received phone calls about villages near Joshimath facing similar situation about which the Chief Minister will be apprised," Sitarganj MLA Saurabh Bahuguna was quoted as saying by news agency ANI. Elaborating on the ongoing construction work at Joshimath, Disaster Management Secretary Ranjit Sinha said, "There is no evidence available clearing the reasons behind this disaster in Joshimath, all we know is land can not bear the load. Our relief work is still on and until then there will be no construction work done at the location." "Today Border Management Secretary from MHA along with his team and all NDMA's regiment Secretary and three members interacted with us and the Chief Minister," Sinha informed. CM Pushkar Singh Dhami's secretary R Meenakshi Sundaram on Thursday informed that the state government is surveying the details of the areas as danger and buffer zone. After that, the government will ...

DEHRADUN: Disposing of a PIL pending since 2019, the The court directed NHAI to start work at the proposed site keeping in view the geological condition. NHAI is constructing the Ranibagh-Nainital Ropeway and the base station will be built at Hanumangarhi located at Manora Peak. Expressing concern over the proposed construction of a ropeway base station at the ecologically fragile Manora Peak, petitioner Ajay Singh Rawat had sought directions to the state government to re-plan the ropeway by constructing the base station at a safer place. The petitioner claimed that the base station at Manora Peak would be "disastrous", given the fragile nature of the rocks there. Meanwhile, chief standing counsel (CSC) CS Rawat said that the project has now been taken over by National Highways Logistics Management Limited, an arm of NHAI, and is conducting a detailed technical survey prior to construction work. "The geotechnical and soil survey has been done. After conducting the digital feasibility, for which tenders have been invited, a final decision in this regard is likely to be taken by October," the CSC said. The HC said that it has no reason to believe that the NHAI, which is a professional and responsible body, would not take into consideration all relevant aspects before taking a decision to construct the ropeway with its base station at Manora Peak.

Members of the local business fraternity under the banner of Prantiya Udyog Vyapar Pratinidhi Mandal –Joshimath staged a protest against the resumption of work on construction of the Helang-Marwadi bypass here on Sunday. All the shops in the town including medical stores remained closed as part of the protest. It will be recalled that the construction of this bypass was halted shortly after the Joshimath land subsidence disaster started escalating earlier during December last year. However, after a period of about five months, approval was granted to resume work on construction of the Helang-Marwadi bypass. The resumption of work on this road was met with opposition, especially from members of the business fraternity in Joshimath. Local shopkeepers and other members of the business fraternity took out a protest rally on Sunday. The protesters warned that they will intensify their protest if work on the construction of this bypass is not stopped soon. They pointed out that construction of this bypass will affect traditional beliefs as it is believed that a visit to Badrinath temple is incomplete without paying obeisance at the Narsinh temple in Joshimath. The Prantiya Udyog Vyapar Pratinidhi Mandal president Nain Singh Bhandari opined that construction of the Helang-Marwadi bypass would prove devastating for Joshimath as it would negatively impact the livelihoods of the town’s business fraternity. The locals will intensify their protest if work on the construction of the by...

"Declare Himalayas as an eco-sensitive zone. Regulate big projects causing devastation," experts have said about subsidence-hit holy town of Uttarakhand, Joshimath. The experts have said that unplanned and uncontrolled developmental work in Joshimath has led to the devastation that has grappled the town. The experts urged the government to take long-term measures to address the problem of land-subsidence on the towns along the Himalayas. While the width of the road under the Char Dham road widening project must be regulated to intermediate standard to minimize the damage to the terrain, the Char Dham railways project should be reassessed, it added. " A detailed carrying capacity assessment of Uttarakhand should be done to ensure that the number of tourists visiting these places is accounted for and also to ensure that the tourist flow does not cause environmental overburdening, it added. The roundtable, organised to deliberate on the topic 'Imminent Himalayan Crisis', was attended by former chairperson of a Supreme Court-appointed committee on the Centre's Char Dham project Ravi Chopra, its former member Hemant Dhyani and others, SJM co-convenor Awshwani Mahajan told news agency PTI. "Even though some steps have been taken in view of the current crisis, experts believe that the sinking of this first Jyotir Math established by Adi Shankaracharya cannot be stopped," he added. Terming the steps taken by the government to deal with the prevailing situation "inadequate", the re...