As the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) members met Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami regarding the looming disaster due to land subsidence at Joshimath in Chamoli district on Monday, many residents are reluctant to leave their homes declared unsafe.
Now, the number of cracked homes has increased to 678 with more than 80 families being shifted to temporary accommodations arranged by the authorities.
Meanwhile, the Supreme Court on Monday asked a petitioner seeking the court’s intervention to declare the crisis in Joshimath as a national disaster to mention his plea Tuesday for urgent listing.
Uttarakhand Chief Secretary SS Sandhu stressed that every minute is important and directed immediate evacuation of people from the affected zone.
The district administration had put red cross marks on more than 200 unsafe houses in the sinking town.
It asked their occupants to either shift to the temporary relief centres or rented accommodation for which each family will get assistance of `4,000 per month for the next six months from the State Government.
The NDMA members suggested the root cause of the subsidence and the place where water is retained must be ascertained. Assuring the State all necessary assistance, they stated that active participation of the scientists from the institutions concerned will be sought to resolve the problem.
The NDMA members also said the locations identified for rehabilitation of the affected families should also be geologically surveyed. All necessary action including the drafting of plans and action on reports from all institutions should be implemented under one roof so that the benefit of study reports is experienced soon, they said.
Talking to the NDMA members, Dhami said the carrying capacity of other mountain towns in Uttarakhand must also be ascertained for which necessary scientific research and testing should be facilitated.
On the same day, Chief Secretary Sukhbir Singh Sandhu also held a meeting with senior officials to review the situation in Joshimath.
He ordered that measures to address the toe erosion taking place should be started immediately. The buildings which have developed cracks and are dilapidated must be demolished soon so that the buildings do not cause any more damage. It was also decided that the Chief Secretary will take a meeting on a daily basis to review the situation in Joshimath. Even as the authorities are requesting all residents in the affected area — about 40 per cent of Joshimath — to shift immediately to temporary accommodations facilitated by the authorities, many are still living in their damaged homes. The Chief Secretary directed that the affected area must be vacated without further delay.