With the passing of every day Joshimath town faces the danger of becoming a casualty of land subsidence. The satellite images of Joshimath released by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) show that the Himalayan town sank at a rapid pace of 5.4 cm in just 12 days, triggered by a possible subsidence event on January 2.
Amid reports that a similar situation can arise at other subsidence-prone locations in the State, the Uttarakhand Government on Friday decided to conduct a study on the carrying capacity of all towns located in the hills.
The Government unveiled a series of relief measures. The decisions were taken at a meeting of the State Cabinet here chaired by Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami.
The Cabinet gave approval to the construction of prefabricated houses for short-term rehabilitation of the affected people of Joshimath at identified locations in Koti Farm, Pipalkoti, Gauchar, Gaukh Selang, and Dhak villages after their survey.
Meanwhile, the preliminary study by ISRO’s National Remote Sensing Centre (NRSC) said the land subsidence was slow between April and November 2022, during which the pictures were taken from the Cartosat-2S satellite.
“The region subsided around 5 cm within a span of a few days and the areal extent of subsidence has also increased. But it is confined to the central part of Joshimath town,” the NRSC report said.
It said a subsidence zone resembling a generic landslide shape was identified — tapered top and fanning out at the base.
The report noted that the crown of the subsidence was located near Joshimath-Auli road at a height of 2,180 metres.
The images show the Army Helipad and Narsingh Temple as the prominent landmarks in the subsidence zone that spans the central part of Joshimath town.
A total of 169 families consisting of 589 members have so far been shifted to relief centres. There are 835 rooms serving as relief centres in Joshimath and Pipalkoti which can together accommodate 3,630 people. Interim assistance of `1.5 lakh has been paid so far to 42 affected families. Dhami on Thursday said a committee would decide the market rate for compensation to be paid to the families affected in Joshimath by keeping in mind the interests of stakeholders.
The State Government on Friday decided to waive for six months the electricity and water bills of families and individuals affected in the subsidence-hit Joshimath. The Government also decided to put on hold the repayment of bank loans owed by the affected people for one year. The cooperative banks will implement the one-year moratorium on repayment of loans immediately, while the State Government will request the Centre to ask commercial banks to take a similar measure for the affected people in Joshimath, chief secretary SS Sandhu said at a press conference after the Cabinet meeting. The Cabinet decided to increase the amount being given by the State Government to the affected families to pay rent from Rs 4,000 per month to Rs 5,000 per month. It also authorised the Chief Minister to increase it further on the recommendation of the District Magistrate.
People in Joshimath have been complaining that Rs 4,000 for rent is too low.
Each affected family staying in temporary relief camps built in hotels and residential units will be paid Rs 950 per room per day for their accommodation besides Rs 450 per head per day for expenses.
Besides, they will get Rs 80 per day to buy feed for big animals and Rs 45 for small ones.
Long and short term relief measures can be taken up out of the State Government’s own resources till the time a package is allocated by the centre, Sandhu said. The amount will be adjusted when the package is received from the Centre.