Joshimath, surrounding areas sink by 2.5 inch every year, finds study

According to two-year research done by the Indian Institute of Remote Sensing, Joshimath and the surrounding areas have been sinking at a pace of 6.5 cm or 2.5 inches each year, reported NDTV.

The Dehradun-based institute has been studying satellite photographs taken between July 2020 and March 2022 of the region, which is particularly sensitive and experiences a lot of tectonic activity.

Joshimath, a temple town that had been dubbed “sinking” for a while, hit a crisis point last year when huge fissures started to appear in its structures and roads. Another village 90 kilometres downstream has also begun to show cracks. The locals in Joshimath blame the nearby Tapovan project of the National Thermal Power Corporation or NTPC, saying it has aggravated the situation.

So far, more than 110 families have evacuated their homes in Joshimath. The administration plans to evacuate the whole town.

Bulldozer demolition, however, which was scheduled to start today, was suspended in response to objections from angry locals. The town’s merchants and hotel owners, who rely heavily on pilgrim traffic, claimed that they had not been told previously.

“If my hotel is being demolished in the public interest even though there are partial cracks in it, I am ok with it. But I should have been given a notice,” said Thakur Singh Rana to NDTV, whose hotel was one of the two to be razed today.

The catastrophe that is developing is not limited only to Joshimath. Residents of Bahuguna Nagar in Karnaprayag have also reported large cracks that have emerged in at least 50 homes over the last few months.