Joshimath: People are furious with the government for ignoring their concerns about the dangerous situation of the buildings in the Himalayan town, which have become increasingly unsafe due to heavy construction activities going on around it. They blame the crisis mostly on the NTPC's Tapovan-Vishnugad hydel project.
"For the past 14 months, we are tryng to draw attention of the authorities. Now that things are getting out of hand, they are sending in assessment teams made up of experts to have a look" Convener of the Joshimath Bachao Sangharsh Samiti, Atul Sati, stated. Things at Joshimath wouldn't have been as scary, he said, if people had listened to what we were saying at the time.
Already in November 2021, due to land subsidence, 14 families' homes were under danger, as Sati recounts.—Inputs from Agencies