Joshimath snowfall: Adding to the woes of people, Uttarakhand's sinking town received the season's first snowfall on Friday, January 20. According to sources, the snowfall began around 4 am and the weather is expected to remain the same for the next 24 hours.
This is also expected to make the situation very tough for the residents of the town which is already going through land subsidence rendering people homeless.
The major threat is that the houses and buildings, which have huge cracks, are in danger of collapsing due to rain and snowfall in the region. Meanwhile, the administration will also have to halt the demolition drive today due to inclement weather. The vehicles have also stopped plying as roads are completely covered with ice.
No further widening of cracks in damaged houses
According to a senior official, crack meters installed in the damaged houses of Joshimath have registered no further widening of cracks in the last three days, but water discharge from an underground channel near JP Colony has shot up again to 150 litres per minute.
Earlier on Thursday, Uttarakhand minister Satpal Maharaj said an inquiry will be conducted to find out how multi-storey buildings were allowed to be constructed in Joshimath which has been sinking for at least 20 years.
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CM Dhami hold review meeting
Meanwhile, Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami held a meeting with senior officials to review relief work being carried out in Joshimath and said there will be no dearth of funds for disaster management measures to be taken in the town.
Notably, it was January 2 when land subsidence led to hairline wall fissures widening with a distant rumbling noise heard in some places, leading to gaping cracks in houses, streets and other establishments of the town of nearly 23,000 people.
