By OUR STAFF REPORTER
Nainital, 13 Jan: A major decision has been taken by the High Court on the Joshimath landslide. The Uttarakhand High Court has put an immediate stay on the construction and tunnel blasting of all ongoing hydropower projects in the Joshimath region. Instructions have been given to hold an inquiry by impartial experts. It was said on behalf of the government and hydropower project companies that, at present, no construction or blasting is being done by them. Taking note of this, the High Court again made it clear that there should be no construction there and, at the same time, an independent expert committee should be formed. The report of all the experts has been asked to be placed before the High Court in a sealed cover and the matter has been posted for further hearing after 2 months.
While hearing a pending public interest litigation of 2021 on behalf of Uttarakhand Parivartan Party President and advocate PC Tiwari, the High Court has issued important guidelines on the Joshimath incident.
PC Tiwari said that, earlier, on 7 February, 2021, in the Nanda Devi Biosphere, there was an incident of glacier burst, after which his public interest litigation was filed in the High Court, seeking guidelines from the High Court regarding early warning system and preventing unbalanced development.
During the pendency of this petition, after the Joshimath landslide, his advocate Snigdha Tiwari made an interim submission to the court that more than 700 houses have come under the grip of landslides and fissures in Joshimath. The town’s population is facing very serious side effects of the construction activity.
Giving voice to the suffering of the people there, it was argued by Snigdha that, in 1976, itself, the Mishra Committee it had made it clear that Joshimath y was built on a landslide, and was, therefore, sensitive by nature. After this, again in 2010, it was warned by experts that big hydroelectric projects should not be operated in Joshimath area, but no one listened to them and, at present, the consequences are before everyone.
