Chamoli administration begins sealing unsafe houses in Joshimath

Chamoli district administration in Joshimath town in Uttarakhand began sealing the unsafe buildings that have developed cracks after the distribution of the compensation to the affected families, officials said.

The Uttarakhand government in its state budget, presented on Wednesday, allocated ₹1,000 crore for relief measures in crisis-hit Joshimath.

Chamoli district magistrate (DM) Himanshu Khurana, who visited a land subsidence site on Thursday, said that the developed cracks pose a risk to the life of people.

“To avoid any fatal incident, the administration is immediately sealing such properties to make it out of bounds for people, especially children,” he said.

Also Read: Uttarakhand govt sets aside ₹1,000 crore in budget for relief ops in Joshimath

Khurana said the administration has so far sealed 15 houses that have developed cracks. “These are the houses of the families who have been given the disaster relief amount worth ₹3.69 crore,” the DM added.

So far, 868 houses have developed cracks due to land subsidence activities in Joshimath, out of which 181 have been declared unsafe for living.

According to the administration officials, the families of the house that are sealed, are currently residing in camps and rented buildings and have been advised to stay away as these houses still pose risk to life.

Meanwhile, Joshimath municipal board president Shailendra Panwar welcomed the state government’s announcement of a monetary allocation worth ₹1,000 crore for rescue operations in Joshimath and other landslide-prone areas.

“The budget allocated for the rescue operations in Joshimath will speed up the rehabilitation and compensation award process thus providing relief to the affected family but it should be increased further,”

According to district officials, there have been no fresh incidents of landslides reported from anywhere in Joshimath in the past month, especially in Manohar Bagh Singhdhar, Gandhinagar, and Ravigram areas, which initially witnessed extensive landslides and cracks developing in the houses.

Also Read: Uttarakhand HC seeks Centre, state’s response on petitions on Joshimath, Chamoly

“No new cracks have been seen since February 10 and iron pies have been installed in the Singh Dhar and Sunil wards under the municipal limits of Joshimat,” Khurana said.

Of the 868 crack-developed structures, 181 buildings have been declared “unsafe” by the administration but after families from camps were coming to their houses again and again, the administration was forced to seal the buildings as a precautionary measure, officials said.

Experts have claimed that there is a clear link between developmental projects and the land subsidence crisis in the Himalayan town of Joshimath that displaced hundreds of families.