Though many crores of rupees have been spent by the Government on repair and construction works, one year after disaster-hit Uttarakhand, the relief and rehabilitation of the disaster affected and construction of roads has still remained incomplete.
Evidently, the focus of the Uttarakhand Government was more on resuming the Char Dham Yatra in May this year even without proper preparations rather than on ensuring proper rehabilitation of disaster victims and repairing the damaged infrastructure.
last year’s disaster also saw a flood in the Alaknanda river that damaged many homes, Garhwal Central University campus, SSB Academy campus, ITI and infrastructure in Srinagar.
The authorities decided to protected settlements in Srikot and Srinagar from floods in the future by constructing safety wall and diverting the course of the river.
The diversion work which is still under progress will cost at least Rs 1.5 crore while Rs 5.5 crore is being spent on construction of flood safety wall in this area.
Undertaking the works, the Irrigation Department undertook river diversion work with 391 cumec water flow in the river but the recent melting of glaciers has increased the flow to about 500 cumec which is affecting the diversion channels prepared so far. Geologists state that Srinagar and adjoining areas could face the risk of flood again if the water level rises in the future.
The Chauras stadium of the Garhwal Central University which was damaged by the flood last year has been affected further by land loss due to the flow of the river which is now threatening other structures. The authorities are working on diverting the river but construction of a safety wall was not considered to save the stadium by the authorities.
The locals complain that the works undertaken by the authorities do not instill confidence among the disaster- affected due to delayed and incomplete execution apart from inferior quality of works.
It now remains to be seen whether the coming rainy season will further increase the woes of the disaster-affected in the Srinagar and adjoining areas even before they are able to rise from the debris of last year’s disaster.