Authorities in the Himalayan city of Joshimath, located in northern India, evacuated its residents on Sunday (January 8th) after cracks appeared in hundreds of buildings, some of which began to collapse.
If the causes of this phenomenon remained obscure, the inhabitants of this commune of the State of Uttarakhand, impute it to the construction of roads and tunnels for a hydroelectric project nearby.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi called an emergency meeting on Sunday evening and the government set up a panel of experts to conduct a "
rapid study
" into the causes.
At least 60 families have been relocated to shelters, and many others, whose homes have started to collapse, are expected to be in turn, local official Himanshu Khurana told AFP.
Authorities already alerted
But according to several witnesses, a large part of the population of the city, which has 20,000 inhabitants, have already left their homes and many of them have been forced to sleep in the freezing cold.
They claim to have alerted authorities for weeks, if not months, about cracks in buildings and roads, some of which were oozing muddy brown water.
Another official, who requested anonymity, confirmed that several areas of the city had been "
demarcated as dangerous
" and access to them was restricted.
“
People are very worried.
There are fears that the whole city will sink
,” he said.
Helicopters fly over the city.
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Situated at around 1800m above sea level, Joshimath is a major access point to a number of important religious sites in the Himalayas, attracting thousands of pilgrims every year.
It is also home to a major Indian Army base.
The earthquake-prone region has seen a number of disasters in recent years, which experts attribute to melting glaciers and unplanned construction.
Several construction projects are planned, including hydroelectric power stations and a road axis to improve access - by the army - to the Chinese border area and Hindu pilgrimage sites - one of Narendra Modi's favorite projects. .
In February 2021, at least 200 people were killed in flash floods in and around Joshimath, a human toll that experts have partly blamed on excessive development.