Activists from Himalayan states condemn the arrest of Sonam Wangchuk, demanding his release and supporting the call for statehood and inclusion in the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution. They also warn of a larger crisis unfolding across the Himalayan region due to climate change and poor governance.
On August 5, 1953, Jawaharlal Nehru sent a strange note to the foreign secretary. It is worth mentioning because it was symptomatic of the lack of knowledge about Western Tibet in India and in South Block in particular, notes Claude Arpi.
'The government is distributing land in Ladakh as if they are selling cinema hall tickets.'
'Cracks continue to appear in more and more houses.' 'We believe the government is not going to tell us the truth.'
As many as 849 houses in Joshimath have developed cracks following land subsidence there and 258 families have been evacuated to temporary relief centres, officials said.
As the crisis worsens in Joshimath, with residents being relocated in the aftermath of rapid land subsidence, NTPC has halted work in its tunnel near Tapovan.
Residents of Joshimath broke down as they left their homes that have been marked 'unsafe' by the district administration in the wake of the landslide and subsidence.
'The government only wakes up after devastation.' 'The government does not understand the gravity of the situation nor they do not want to understand the gravity of the situation.'
In a letter to the chief secretary, government of Uttarakhand, Union Power Secretary Alok Kumar said the land subsidence in Joshimath was a very old issue, dating back to 1976, and the construction of the 4x130 megawatt Tapovan Vishnugad project started only in 2006 by NTPC.
A fresh crack has appeared near a residential building in subsidence-hit Joshimath, sparking concerns among residents and the administration that the problem might worsen during the monsoon.
The PSInSAR satellite technique used to observe the gradual sinking of Uttarakhand's Joshimath town is a powerful remote sensing tool capable of measuring and monitoring displacements in the Earth's surface over time.
The Indian Army is conducting field trials of several cutting-edge defence systems under 'near-combat conditions', integrating electronic warfare simulations, to assess their performance rigorously, officials said on Saturday.
The construction work of 4x130 MW Tapovan Vishnugad project started in November 2006. The project includes the construction of a concrete barrage at Tapovan (15 km upstream of Joshimath town).
No one has any objection to offering of namaz on the occasion of Bakrid outside the temple town in reverence to it, he said.
Avimukteshwaranand Saraswati performs a havan to save Joshimath from land subsidence at the Narsimha temple in Joshimath.
'There were literally thousands of houses with cracks.' '40 percent of the town has been affected.'
"There are democratically elected institutions to look into it. Everything important should not come to us. We will list it on January 16," the CJI said.
It is clarified that the tunnel constructed by NTPC is not passing under Joshimath town, the NTPC said.
During the winter, Badrinath's 45 kg of gold and 35 kg of silver is kept at the Narsingh temple in Joshimath, located about half a kilometre from the houses which have developed cracks because of the subsidence.
Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami on Saturday reviewed relief and rescue operations with senior officials of the government after returning to Dehradun from on-site inspection of Joshimath landslide area gave directions for forming a coordination committee immediately at the government level under the chairmanship of the Additional Chief Secretary and at the local level under the chairmanship of the Commissioner Garhwal.
The tourism industry plays a vital role in the town, accounting for 70 per cent of its economy, according to experts.
The local administration has set up relief centres at four-five places in the Himalayan town, Garhwal commissioner Sushil Kumar said.
'The entire public needs to be evacuated immediately. Any day, the entire town can collapse.'
Amid rising concerns over subsidence-hit Joshimath, authorities are worried about where to keep the riches of Badrinath safeguarded at Narsingh temple.
General Pande said, "25-28 buildings (of the Army) have developed minor cracks and the soldiers have been temporarily relocated. If needed they will be permanently relocated to Auli."
Yet another effort has been made by the state government for a scientific study with the help of satellite imagery of the crisis in the sinking town, Bhatt, who is associated with the Chipko Movement, said.
Now, the recent heavy rain has sparked panic among the disaster-hit families of Joshimath.
The statements on Joshimath are creating confusion not only among affected residents but also among citizens of the country.
Microsoft's Indian-origin CEO Satya Nadella, in communication with employees, said the company will align its cost structure with revenue and customer demand.
'All hydropower projects in the Himalayan region must be stopped.' 'Joshimath is not alone.'
The protesters demonstrated against the NTPC's Tapovan Vishnugad Hydroelectric Project which was being constructed in the area.
The Joshimath Bachao Sangharsh Samiti had given the call for the rally to press for demands of permanent rehabilitation and compensation to affected families.
Many families in the affected area are finding it hard to sever their emotional ties with their homes and move out.
Officials said 13 more families living in houses with huge cracks were moved by the administration to safe locations on Sunday.
Hotels Malari Inn and Mount View, which have developed more cracks, will be demolished on Tuesday.
From the numerous small and big shops in the main markets to the residential properties, vehicles, and billboards, posters with the slogan 'NTPC go back' have come up around the town in Uttarakhand's Chamoli district over the past few days.
A total of 800 people, belonging to 237 families, have so far been shifted to safety by the district administration
In Delhi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah assessed the situation in Joshimath and steps taken to ameliorate people's hardship at a meeting attended by Union ministers Nitin Gadkari, R K Singh, Bhupendra Yadav and Gajendra Singh Shekhawat and top officials.
Amid protests by a group of residents in Joshimath, the Chamoli administration on Thursday put a ban on all construction activities in and around the 'sinking' town even as nearly 50 families staying in houses at risk have been evacuated so far.
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.
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