The hill town of Joshimath which is on the way to Badrinath dham, situated in the state of Uttarakhand is in the news recently, as roads and homes started developing cracks. According to experts, these cracks are mostly as a result of the frantic infrastructure development taking place in such a delicate ecosystem of the Himalayan region, and also climate change is a force multiplier. Experts are of the opinion that hydroelectric initiatives and construction of tunnels near Joshimath are creating irreparable harm in the region, and this is like a reminder to government that their actions are one of the main reasons for the cause of the damages happening in the region.
There are number of areas in the Joshimath town of Chamoli district situated at an altitude of about 6150 feet are sinking day by day due to both natural calamities and human-induced causes. The residents allege that cracks have been developing in their houses since last year, and after failing to get proper response for the district administration, they have forced to protest against the inaction by the authorities. Now the residents are urging the experts to conduct proper investigation/surveys to address the problem,
In a recent survey conducted by the local administration, regarding landslides and cracks, jt has been found that till date 559 deep, partial cracks in houses/plots have been recorded. One local activist has written on social media that “ the scientific expert committee has not identified the ‘Tapovan Vishnugad Hydro Project’ tunnel which passes just below Joshimath among these factors”, this could be the main cause.
According to the 2011 census, the population of Joshimath municipal area was nearly 17,000 (about 4000 families). A panel of experts set up by the Uttarakhand government has reportedly found that several pockets of Joshimath are ‘subsiding’ due to natural and machine-made factors. The panel found that subsidence (the process by which land or buildings sink to lower level), a gradual settling or sudden subsidence of the land surface due to the removal or displacement of subsurface materials, has induced structural defects and damage observed in almost all districts of Joshimath region. Other factors attributed are, river erosion, drainage, and lack of systematic drainage of sewage, due to excessive construction.
The Tapovan tunnel was also identified as the cause of the landslide. In the tunnel excavation process, the machinery perforated the aquifer(a layer of rock or soil that can take in and hold water), resulting in discharge of about 60 to 70 million litres of water per day. This large scale discharge, will lead to subsidence in the future.
Too much construction has caused several large-scale landslides. Since 2009, there have been about 150 landslides in this region, and the major one being the massive landslide which happened on 19th May 2017, at Vishnuprayag, the confluence (meeting point of two rivers) of the Dhauliganga, and Alaknanda rivers, eight kilometers from Joshimath.
In the year 2021, at least 204 people lost their lives in the Chamoli disaster. The 13.2 MW Rishiganga Hydropower Project and the 520 MW NTPC Hydropower Project turned a natural disaster into major human tragedy. The National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) report on Chamoli disaster in April 2022 clearly states that in the long term, it will be necessary to focus on finding alternative sources of energy, as the area appear to be environmentally sensitive. The town of Joshimath sits on an old rubble which is generally prone to slow slippage. Among the various reasons for the subsidence of Joshimath, the top two reasons would be tunneling and slope cutting.
The precautions advocated by the expert committee since 1976 have not been respected by the subsequent governments, and they have gone in unplanned way to give clearance for the construction of the projects, without considering the damage it might cause to ecological balance of the region. The other problem is that each state which is located in Himalayan region wants to develop their hilly region as tourist spot to earn revenue, but in the process they ignore the ecology. In the last few decades most of the holy spots located in the hilly regions are being converted into tourist spots, which requires lot of construction, which damages the ecology of the region. Secondly, it is known fact that the rivers originate from mountains, but you can not start constructing Hydel power generating plants just because there is plenty of water available in the region. The Uttarakhand is classic case where presence Hydel power projects are creating havoc as far as ecology of the region is concerned.
Hope this case of Joshimath town becomes awakening call for the Central and State governments.
Waiting for your views on this blog.
Anil Malik
Mumbai, India
9th January 2023