By Yemi Olakitan
After hundreds of homes started developing gaping fissures and sinking, authorities in one of the most sacred villages in the Indian Himalayas began evacuating terrified residents on Sunday, according to officials.
Residents of Joshimath in Uttarakhand, a state in the north, cited the construction of roads and tunnels for a neighbouring hydroelectric project as the reason of the apparent subsidence.
After the government assembled a team of experts to conduct a “quick study” into the issue’s root, Prime Minister Narendra Modi scheduled a high-level meeting for later Sunday to address the issue.
According to local administrator Himanshu Khurana, at least 60 families have moved into shelters, and many more will undoubtedly leave their sinking homes soon.
Residents of the town of about 20,000 people reported that a far bigger number had already left their homes and that about 600 homes and hotels were sinking.
Under the condition of anonymity, a second official said that entrance had been prohibited in a number of the town’s “demarcated hazardous” areas.
“People are very anxious. Helicopters were surveying the region when he added, “The worry is that the town is sinking.
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Many neighbours who had to sleep outside in the bitter cold claimed they had been telling authorities about cracks in roads and houses for weeks and in some cases months, some of which were seeping dark murky water.
Joshimath, which is located approximately 1,800 metres (6,000 feet) above sea level and serves as a significant entryway to several significant religious sites in the Himalayas, draws a large number of pilgrims each year.
The town is also home to a significant Indian army installation and a key route leading to the contentious Chinese border, both of which are said to have developed large fissures.
Auli ski resort’s four-kilometer (2.5-mile) cable car ropeway’s pillars were reportedly damaged, making it one of Asia’s longest cable car ropeways.
The area is prone to earthquakes, and it has recently experienced a spate of calamities that experts have attributed to unchecked development and melting glaciers.
A favourite project of Modi’s is a massive road that will improve military access to the area near the Chinese border as well as Hindu pilgrimage sites. Other construction projects include hydropower plants.
At least 200 people died in flash floods in February 2021 in Joshimath and the neighbouring districts; the disaster was partially attributed to excessive growth, according to analysts.
