'Have lived here for 60 years...': Joshimath resident in tears | Video
Home to a population of around 25,000 people, Joshimath is facing concerns over land subsidence after what has been said to be years of “untrammeled development" in the area, as per locals.
Ahead of a planned demolition of hotels and houses in ‘unsafe zones’ of Uttarakhand’s ‘sinking’ town Joshimath, affected locals were seen tearing up as they bid a painful goodbye to their houses while staring at an uncertain future. On Tuesday, a video was shared by news agency ANI that showed local women perplexed at the situation, sobbing and emotional amid a rushed evacuation bid by government officials.
"This is my maternal home. I got married at the age of 19. My mother is 80 years old and I have an elder brother. We built this home by working hard and making an earning. We lived here for 60 years but it is all ending now," a resident, Bindu, was quoted as saying by news agency ANI.
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Home to a population of around 25,000 people, Joshimath is facing concerns over land subsidence after what has been said to be years of “untrammeled development" in the area, as per locals. An overnight halt for those visiting the shrines in Badrinath and Hemkund Sahib and other tourist destinations, the town has been burdened by too many hotels and resorts in the area, which has been blamed by experts for the heaviest land subsidence reported in the town till date.
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Meanwhile, authorities are prepared to take down the first two buildings to be demolished to avoid any untoward incident. On the demolition, Manikant Mishra, a senior official with the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), told news agency ANI, “Their demolition is essential because there are several houses… around. If these two sink any further, they can collapse… so experts decided to demolish it".
Earlier, the District Disaster Management Authority (DDMA), Chamoli, issued a bulletin in view of landslides in the area. The bulletin said that cracks have been noticed in a total of 678 buildings in the town and in view of security, about 81 families have been temporarily displaced from the region.
(With inputs from ANI)
