DEHRADUN: According to officials, hundreds of houses began developing yawning cracks and sinking on Sunday, prompting authorities in one of the holiest towns in the Indian Himalayas to evacuate panicked residents.
Residents of Joshimath, in the northern state of Uttarakhand, attributed the apparent subsidence to the construction of roads and tunnels for a nearby hydroelectric project. The cause of the apparent subsidence was unknown.
After the government established an expert panel to carry out a “rapid study” into the reason for the problem, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has scheduled a high-level meeting to discuss the issue later on Sunday.
Himanshu Khurana, a local official, told the AFP that at least 60 families had been moved into shelters and that many more were likely to be moved out of their sinking homes.
Around 600 houses and hotels were sinking in the town of about 20,000 people, according to residents, and a much larger number had already left their homes.
On the condition of anonymity, a different official stated that several parts of the town had been “demarcated unsafe” and had restricted entry.
People are extremely concerned. As helicopters surveyed the area, he stated, “The fear is that the town is sinking.”
Many locals have been forced to sleep outside in the freezing cold. They said they had been telling authorities about cracks in buildings and roads, some of which were leaking brown, muddy water, for weeks or even months.
Vineeta Devi, a woman, said that in October, cracks started to appear in her walls. Now, the cracks are so wide that her house, along with 25 other houses in her neighborhood, is on the verge of falling down.
“What will my children go through? Now, how would they study? She told AFP.
Sunaina, another resident, stated, “We made this house with our life’s earnings, but now it’s gone.”
Pilgrims
Joshimath, which is approximately 1,800 meters (6,000 feet) above sea level, is a major entry point to a number of significant religious sites in the Himalayas and draws thousands of pilgrims annually.
In addition, the town is home to a significant Indian army base as well as a crucial road that leads to the disputed border with China and has also reportedly developed large cracks.
The Auli ski resort’s four-kilometer (2.5-mile) cable car ropeway, one of the largest in Asia, was reportedly supported by damaged pillars.
Experts have attributed a number of disasters in recent years to the melting of glaciers and uncontrolled construction in the region, which is prone to earthquakes.
Modi’s favorite building projects include hydroelectric plants, a major road that will make it easier for military personnel to get to the Chinese border and Hindu pilgrimage sites.
In a disaster that experts partly blamed on excessive development, flash floods in Joshimath and the surrounding areas killed at least 200 people in February 2021.
