Joshimath "Sinking" Reminder That Damage To Environment Irreversible: Experts

Cracks have appeared in hundreds of houses of Joshimath, the gateway to some renowned pilgrimage sites like Badrinath and Hemkund Sahib.

Land subsidence in Joshimath is primarily due to the National Thermal Power Corporation's Tapovan Vishnugad Hydro Power Project and is a very grave reminder that people are messing up with the environment to an extent that is irreversible, experts said on Sunday.

They said rampant infrastructure development without a plan is making the fragile Himalayan ecosystem even more vulnerable to the effects of climate change which acts as a force-multiplier.

Cracks have appeared in hundreds of houses of Joshimath, the gateway to some renowned pilgrimage sites like Badrinath and Hemkund Sahib.

Chamoli District Magistrate (DM) Himanshu Khurana on Sunday told PTI that Joshimath has been declared a landslide-subsidence zone and over 60 families living in uninhabitable houses have been moved to temporary relief centres.