‘Joshimath situation won’t happen in Himachal,’ says chief minister Sukhu

Amid concerns over the recent land subsidence in Uttarakhand’s Joshimath, Himachal Pradesh chief minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu on Monday held a meeting.

With the disaster management authorities in the state. Sukhu said that a “Joshimath-like crisis” is unlikely to occur in Himachal, but he has advised officials to exercise caution. “Information has been taken from the deputy commissioner (DC) regarding the sinking and sliding areas… but at present, there is no visible development like the Joshimath incident in Himachal,” he was quoted as saying by news agency ANI.

On Sunday, the chief minister had expressed apprehension over likelihood of subsidence, and urged the Centre to pay attention to fragile areas. “Like Joshimath, we also have some regions in Himachal Pradesh which are sliding gradually.

We couldn’t plan for these regions effectively with adequate technology,” Sukhu had said, addressing a briefing via video conference at the India Meteorological Department’s 148th Foundation Day event held in Delhi.

As much as 30 per cent of the area in Kinnaur and Spiti see frequent cloudbursts, he pointed out. “These areas need to be covered. Around 2-3 years ago, there was a cloudburst in Kinnaur, which not only damaged life and property but also hydropower projects. Please pay attention to this,” Sukhu added.

Meanwhile, the number of houses that have developed cracks in Joshimath, the gateway to famous pilgrimage sites like Badrinath and Hemkund Sahib, has now risen to 826, out of which 165 are in the “unsafe zone”, a bulletin from the Disaster Management Authority said. So far, 798 people have been shifted to temporary relief centres.