CM Dhami orders immediate evacuation of 600 families in Joshimath

Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami on Friday ordered immediate evacuation of around 600 families living in houses which have developed huge cracks and are at risk in Joshimath town which is sinkingSaving lives is our first priority Officials have been asked to shift around 600 families living in endangered houses in Joshimath to safe locations Dhami told reporters here after reviewing the situation in the sinking town with officials via video conferenceWe are also working on short and long term plans to address the situation in Joshimath he saidThe chief minister will visit Joshimath on Saturday meet the affected people and hold a meeting with officials Garhwal Commissioner Sushil Kumar and secretary disaster management Ranjit Kumar Sinha along with a team of experts are camping on the ground to constantly monitor the situation Dhami saidRelocation of people in affected areas should be done expeditiously he told the officialsAlso read Uttarakhand CM directs officials to set up rehabilitation centre in Joshimath in wake of land subsidenceMedical treatment facilities should be available on ground and arrangements for airlifting people should also be made he said An immediate action plan as well as a long term action plan should be prepared and work on both should be started in right earnest Dhami saidProcedures should be simplified to expedite work on treatment of danger zones sewer and drainageLives of our citizens are most important for us he said Joshimath should be divided into sectors and zones and action should be taken accordingly A disaster control room should also be set up in the town the chief minister saidFor permanent rehabilitation of affected people alternative locations should be identified in Pipalkoti Gauchar and other places he saidThe district magistrate should stay in touch with people and the potential danger zones should also be identifiedMoving people to safe locations is necessary Satellite images can also be useful in this All departments should act with a team spirit to achieve success in the exercise he saidAdequate deployment of State Disaster Response Force and National Disaster Response Force personnel should be made to help the affected people he said adding helicopter services should also be made available if requiredJoshimath is a town of religious and cultural importance Care should be taken to ensure that the livelihoods of people are not affected he saidA temple collapsed on Friday evening in Singdhar ward of Joshimath further alarming residents living under constant fear of a major disaster in the offingLuckily there was no one inside the temple when it collapsed as it had been abandoned after it developed huge cracks over the past 15 days locals saidHuge cracks have appeared in scores of houses while many have suffered subsidenceNearly 50 families have been moved to safer locations officials said Apart from them 60 families living in a colony meant for Vishnu Prayag Jal Vidyut Pariyojana employees have been shifted elsewhere its Director Pankaj Chauhan saidMarwari area where an aquifer burst three days ago is the worst hit as water is constantly coming down from itAll construction activities related to mega projects like the chardham all weather road and the NTPCs hydel project have been stopped till further orders on the demand of residents The Auli ropeway which is Asias biggest has been stopped after a huge crack developed beneath it former president of the local municipality Rishi Prasad Sati saidLand subsidence has been going on for more than a year but the problem has aggravated over the past fortnight he saidMeanwhile protests continued on Friday as people staged a dharna at the tehsil office Joshimath demanding rehabilitation As Joshimaths susbsidence seemed to aggravate even the BJP sent a team to the town to assess the situationThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever