Though the State Government has announced the formation of Uttarakhand Rehabilitation and Reconstruction Authority following the disaster experienced last month and claims to be undertaking relief works efficiently, the people in disaster-affected areas say that the new authority should not be like the Disaster Mitigation and Management Centre which has had little concrete impact on the disaster management system in the State.
Citing anomalies in the relief works, the affected people are calling for answerability and efficiency in the Government works without which the existing district level disaster management bodies will remain active only in official files.
The disaster affected people in Chamoli, Uttarkashi and Rudraprayag districts have excoriated the callous attitude exhibited by the State Government and district administration in rescue and relief works. The locals complain that the relief materials intended to be distributed among the affected people are being sold by businessmen in various places while the intended beneficiaries, especially in remote villages that have lost road links in the disaster are yet to receive the relief materials.
The general view of the locals, disaster victims and pilgrims is that one cannot fight natural calamities like earthquake but the Government should take precautionary measures particularly on the Char Dham Yatra circuit. Uttarakhand Chief Minister Vijay Bahuguna had announced that except for Kedarnath the routes to the other Char Dham shrines- Badrinath, Gangotri and Yamunotri will be reopened for traffic from September 30. The locals and pilgrims are questioning whether these roads will be reopened while ensuring the safety of road users or simply reopened irrespective of threats to gain political advantage.
Though the Government machinery starts holding meetings reviewed by the Chief Secretary about two months before the start of the Char Dham Yatra, the results of such meetings are restricted to official files and not seen executed effectively on the ground. Many danger zones were marked on the Yatra route but no precautionary measures were taken to prevent landslides in these danger zones.