GS Analyst: Daily Current Affairs

Joshimath, the ancient Uttarakhand town has become a cause of concern. Though the town of Joshimath has been witnessing cracks emerging for the past two decades, things have escalated over the past few days.

How citizens are reacting?

• Citizens are in an uproar, cracks have appeared in homes, families have been evacuated, hotels shuttered and the ropeway service halted.

The location

• Located at a height of 6,000 feet in Uttarakhand’s Chamoli district, the town on the route to Badrinath and Hemkund Sahib falls in high-risk seismic ‘Zone-V’.
• It is located on the top of Main Central Thrust (MCT) line. 
• The geography of entire state of Uttarakhand is fragile. And, Joshimath in particular is situated on old land deposits.
• So, there is always a risk of landslide in Joshimath. Due to this, every year, people of Joshimath notice cracks in their buildings and fields.
• The Jyotirmath Hindu monastery, one of the most important sites in Hinduism, is here.
• It also has nearby one of the closest military stations to the border with China.
  
  

Who is responsible?

The crisis in Joshimath is both natural and man made

• Ground subsidence — a gradual settling or sudden sinking of the earth’s surface due to removal or displacement of subsurface materials — has induced structural defects and damage observed in almost all wards of Joshimath.
• Tunnelling and slope cutting
• Tapovan-Vishnugad hydro projectand ongoing construction of Helang bypass are considered to be one of the main reasons for subsidence.

Suggestive measures

• Further construction in the area should be made only after examining the stability of the site, and restrictions should be placed on the excavation on slopes.
• No boulders should be removed either by digging or blasting and no tree should be cut in the landslide zone.