Joshimath Crises| 'Strictly Enforce Construction Ban, Submit Report To Prevent Further Damage': Uttarakhand HC To State Govt

In a significant order, the Uttarakhand High Court has directed the state government to strictly enforce the ban on construction in the subsidence-hit Joshimath town in the Chamoli district.

The bench of Chief Justice Vipin Sanghi and Justice Alok Kumar Verma also asked the official authorities to appoint a committee of experts to look into the matter and submit the report to prevent further damage within the next two months.

The Court categorically ordered that the committee should include Disaster Management Authority CEO Piyush Rautela and Executive Director, Space Application Centre, MPS Bisht.

The Court passed this order while dealing with a PIL plea filed in the year 2021 in the wake of the bursting of a glacier, due to which the Hyrdo Electric Power Projects on Rishi Ganga River, and the N.T.P.C’s Tapovan Vishnugad Hydropower Project on Dhauliganga River suffered sudden flooding, leading to the death of hundreds of people.

Now, in this plea, an interim application was moved concerning the recent geological developments in the Joshimath area. In this application, the petitioner (P.C. Tewari) attached a 1976 report of the Mishra Commission which stated that Joshimath is sitting on rock and silt, accumulated as a result of landslides and it does not have a solid and stable foundation.

The Report further warned against the undertaking of construction projects and the remedial measures suggested in the said report, inter alia, were that restrictions should be laid on heavy construction work.

The petitioner also submitted an article prepared by Shri M.P. Bisht and Shri Piyush Rautela of H.N.B. Garhwal University, Srinagar (Garhwal) of the Disaster Mitigation and Management Centre warning about the worsening condition of Joshimath.

Taking into account the content of the article and the 1976 report, the Court noted that the reports fell on deaf ears and they were not acted upon.

Further, the Court noted that though the State and the Union governments are taking steps for the residents of the area, it is essential that concerned experts in the field should make a study of the situation existing in the Joshimath area to make an assessment of how the situation can be salvaged, and further damage can be saved.

Consequently, the Court directed the state to rope in independent experts from the fields of Hydrology, Geology, Glaciology, Disaster Management, Geomorphology and landslide experts, to prepare a report, to be submitted in a sealed cover in the High Court on May 24, 2023. 

Lastly, directing the state government to enforce a ban on construction and blasting activities in the area as per the order of Additional District Magistrate, Joshimath, banning all construction activity by the N.T.P.C, the Court posted the matter for hearing on May 24, 2023.

It may be noted that as per a report of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), Joshimath saw a rapid sinking of 5.4 cm in just 12 days. As per an estimate by the State Government, besides hotels and business establishments, 678 homes are in danger.

Case title - P.C. Tewari vs. State of Uttarakhand and others

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