Joshimath land subsidence: 678 buildings marked ‘unsafe’, angry locals protest

Protests have erupted in Uttarakhand’s Joshimath ahead of the demolition of two hotels – Hotel Malari Inn and Hotel Mount View – and hundreds of houses that have developed dangerous cracks due to land subsidence.

Visuals shared by news agency ANI show dozens – many women – marching through the streets of the town against state-run National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) amid claims that construction related to its Tapovan-Vishnugad hydroelectric project has led to this tragedy.

The NTPC has denied this claim; in a statement released January 5, the company said, “The tunnel… does not pass under Joshimath town.”

The NTPC has also said no blasting work is being carried out at this time.

“As of now, 678 buildings (have been) marked unsafe. Many (have been) vacated and the process (of evacuation and demolition) is still underway. Eight teams of SDRF… one NDRF… extra company of PAC and police officials present,” Ashok Kumar, the hill state’s Director-General of Police, told reporters.

“If needed some areas will be sealed. A scientific study is being done.”

Hotel, house demolitions

Manikant Mishra, a senior official with the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), told ANI Malari Inn will be the first to be demolished.

“Of the two hotels, Malari Inn will be demolished in a step-wise manner today. First of all, the top portion will be demolished. It is being done because both the hotels have tilted and have come very close to each other due to the sinking.”

“Their demolition is essential because there are several houses… around. If these two sink any further, they can collapse… so experts decided to demolish.”

Photographs show the two hotels tilting dangerously towards each other.

Other visuals shared by ANI show demolition and disaster response teams deployed at the spot and using loudspeakers to urge bystanders to move away.

This comes on a day when a Supreme Court bench headed by Chief Justice DY Chandrachud refused an urgent hearing on the issue and posted the matter to January 16, saying ‘democratically-elected institutions’ were working on it.

All residents have been evacuated from ‘unsafe’ zones and the demolition will be carried out by experts from Roorkee’s Central Building Research Institute in Roorkee, with state and national disaster response teams ready to assist.

Reports indicate that at least 4,000 people have been shifted out.

“They will be demolishing these hotels for safety of 15-20 families still living here. Our houses have been destroyed,” Manmohan Singh Rawat, a local, said.

Visuals show enormous cracks in buildings and on roads of the temple town, where nearly 700 structures have been damaged. District officials have put red ‘X’ marks on over 200 houses to indicate their condemned status and have asked to either shift to relief camps or rented accommodation; in the latter case, the state will give each family ₹4,000 per month for the next six months.

What is the government doing?

Apart from evacuating residents and demolishing damaged buildings, the Uttarakhand government is also working on a plan to relocate and rehabilitate.

Possible relocation sites include Gauchar (90km away) and Pipalkoti (35 km away), according to Uttarakhand chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami, who said efforts are being made for the town’s restoration.

Prime minister Narendra Modi has promised support from the centre.

What do locals say?

Prakash Bhutiyal, 50, said seven of 11 rooms in his residence-cum-guesthouse had developed cracks and that he and his family are waiting to be moved.

“Our family of nine has been forced to live in just one room,” he said. “We have kept all our belongings in the open. We are yet to be shifted to a safer place.”

Some appear amenable to relocation to an area close to Joshimath but others have objected and sought financial compensation – a ‘one-time settlement’.

One affected resident – a Deepak Rawat who was shifted with his family after their house, behind Hotel Mount View, developed cracks – said: “The government should rehabilitate us to a location close to Joshimath…”

Thakur Singh Rana, a hotelier also in a relief camp, had the opposite view, and said, “We want a one-time settlement plan. We don’t want the government to impose anything… If we are paid according, we can shift wherever we want…”

Cracks appear elsewhere in district

Meanwhile, cracks have also been seen on some houses in Bahuguna Nagar of Karnaprayag Municipality area of Chamoli district, where Joshimath is located.

Sitarganj MLA Saurabh Bahuguna said villages nearby face a similar situation.

What caused the land subsidence?

Experts and residents have long warned that large-scale construction work in and around the town, including those by the NTPC may lead to land subsidence.

NTPC – India’s largest power producer – has stressed its tunnelling and other work is not responsible for the cracks in the town of about 17,000 people.

A state-based geology professor, YP Sundriyal, told Bloomberg the cracks in the buildings may be because due to several factors, including construction of the power project andand violation of municipal rules while building homes.

Environmentalists have red-flagged the breakneck economic development for decades; incidents of land subsidence were reported as early as the 1970s.