What is happening at Joshimath is nothing new. For at least the last 25 years, Molta and Mahamolta—villages with a population of about a 1,000 people and about 25km from Joshimath—have been sinking. I visited these villages sometime back. People are mostly not aware of what is happening. This phenomenon gets traction only when there is loss or displacement because of it.
While the sinking (subsidence) has been going on for some time, it never happened at this scale; a large area is affected this time. Clearly, it is alarming as many houses are already damaged and have been rendered unsuitable for habitation.
Joshimath is located in the higher Himalayan region and there is a tectonic line just to its south called the Main Central Thrust. The older rocks, forming the basement in the crustal profile, have moved because of the compression resulting from the northward movement and subsequent collision of the Indian plate with the Eurasian plate.
The Himalayas are young fold mountains and the tectonic dangers have to be kept in mind. The Indian plate is moving northward against the Eurasian plate at the rate of 55mm per year. There is a buildup and accumulation of a lot of stress and pressure which is sometimes accommodated by faults, thrusts and tectonic movements. This entire belt—Pithoragarh, Uttarkashi, Bagheshwar, Chamoli, Rudraprayag—falls in zone 5, the highest category of earthquake-prone regions.
Denne historien er fra January 22, 2023-utgaven av THE WEEK India.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent ? Logg på
Denne historien er fra January 22, 2023-utgaven av THE WEEK India.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
What Will It Take To Clean Up Delhi Air?
IT IS ASKED, year after year, why Delhi’s air remains unbreathable despite several interventions to reduce pollution.
Trump and the crisis of liberalism
Although Donald Trump's election to a non-consecutive second term to the US presidency is not unprecedented—Grover Cleveland had done it in 1893—it is nevertheless a watershed moment.
Men eye the woman's purse
A couple of months ago, I chanced upon a young 20-something man at my gym walking out with a women’s sling bag.
When trees hold hands
A filmmaker explores the human-nature connect through the living root bridges
Ms Gee & Gen Z
The vibrant Anuja Chauhan and her daughter Nayantara on the generational gap in romance writing
Vikram Seth-a suitable man
Our golden boy of literature was the star attraction at the recent Shillong Literary Festival in mysterious Meghalaya.
Superman bites the dust
When my granddaughter Kim was about three, I often took her to play in a nearby park.
OLD MAN AND THE SEA
Meet G. Govinda Menon, the 102-year-old engineer who had a key role in surveying the Vizhinjam coast in the 1940s, assessing its potential for an international port
Managing volatility: smarter equity choices in uncertain markets
THE INDIAN STOCK MARKET has delivered a strong 11 per cent CAGR over the past decade, with positive returns for eight straight years.
Investing in actively managed low-volatility portfolios keeps risks at bay
AFTER A ROARING bull market over the past year, equity markets in the recent months have gone into a correction mode as FIIs go on a selling spree. Volatility has risen and investment returns are hurt.