Joshimath: Locals urge administration for re-survey of homes as new cracks emerge

The situation on the ground is contrary to the claims being made by the government and the local administration, Atul Sati, the convenor of Joshimath Bachao Sangharsh Samiti said

Days after Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami said the situation in Joshimath is stable, a few residents of the holy town claimed new cracks have appeared in their houses.

SDM Joshimath, confirmed that she has received complaints from some residents about new cracks in their house. (PTI file image)

In their letters to Joshimath sub-divisional magistrate (SDM) Kumkum Joshi on April 18, they requested the local administration to re-survey their house.

Basanti Devi and her brother Narendra Lal, residents of Chhawani Bazar, said, “New cracks have appeared in our house. Earlier, there were only a few hairline cracks. They have grown bigger and wider too.”

“We have come here to request the administration to re-survey our house. However, nobody is paying heed to our requests,” she alleged.

Atul Sati, the convenor of Joshimath Bachao Sangharsh Samiti, said, “The situation on the ground is contrary to the claims being made by the government and the local administration. They have been saying the town has become stable now. However, locals have been claiming that fresh cracks are appearing in their houses to demand a re-survey. It’s worsening over the period.”

Kumkum Joshi, SDM Joshimath, confirmed that she has received complaints from some residents about new cracks in their house.

She said, “I have received complaints from some locals about new cracks in their house. However, there are no complaints about houses or areas where cracks have appeared for the first time. We have sent our technical team to conduct an assessment. On the basis of the assessment, we will take further action. If the technical team says the house is unsafe, we will move the dwellers out to safer places and include them in the list of affected residents.”

In January, at least 800 residential and commercial buildings developed cracks making them unsafe for use.

On April 8, CM Dhami while addressing a gathering at a public event said, “A kind of atmosphere was created initially that the whole Joshimath town was sinking. People across the country used to ask... what’s happening to Joshimath. Somehow… we put the real situation before everyone. Our state is hit by disasters every year. Sometime Kedarnath… sometime Raini… Sometime Varunavrat in Uttarkashi... Dehradun, Tehri… last year Nainital Champawat, Almora, and before that Dharchula. However, the kind of atmosphere that was created earlier this year led to doubts in the minds of people across the country. However, I came forward and made it clear that the situation in Joshimath, and Uttarakhand is not what is being presented... We have been constantly making arrangements at the government and administration level. Soon after last year’s yatra concluded, we began preparations for the upcoming yatra. I myself has taken four review meetings in this regard,” he said.