Kedarnath Tragedy - No Lessons Learnt

There is an old saying, “Those who forget the past are condemned to repeat it.” In the case of the Kedarnath tragedy of 2013, the question raising its head after a decade is whether any lessons have been learned.

The answer lies in the state of Uttarakhand that has witnessed a decade-long journey that began with the Kedarnath disaster and is currently standing at Joshimath land sinking. The people continue to struggle for a decent rehabilitation.

In between the two landmarks, there have been disasters like the one in Chamoli in 2021. These are the bigger calamities that got national and international attention. The smaller ones continue to be confined to local or regional level and are also conveniently forgotten.

The causes on each one of them eventually zero down to the natural phenomenon related to seismic activity, climatic variations, avalanches and glacial melting but the more important aspect is that of the man made causes that get reflected in the so called ‘development models’ being imposed in the Himalayan zone.

The 10th anniversary of the Kedarnath disaster has once again led to the resurfacing of important questions that surround the whole development narrative in the hills.

Social activists and observers working among the masses point out that had any lessons been learnt from the Kedarnath disaster, the Joshimath land subsidence would not have taken place. They are also drawing the attention of the authorities to the ‘indiscriminate construction’ that is now underway in the periphery of the Badrinath shrine.

“Had the authorities learnt any lesson, the ecosystem of Badrinath would not be facing a threat now. The indiscriminate construction activity in the name of infrastructure development has led to the vanishing of a couple of water channels.

“The whole talk of crowd management and restricted entry to the shrines through a daily quota has proved to be a sham and this year the number of people going to Kedarnath is more than that to Badrinath. Apart from the construction to which several experts in the past have been calling for a halt there is no check on the illegal kiosks that are coming up,” said Jay Singh Rawat who has been chronicling the developments in the region for over three decades.

Some pertinent questions were raised at a community dialogue organised by Social Development for Communities (SDC) Foundation at the Uttaranchal Press Club in Dehradun on June 18. Experts from various fields and eminent citizens stressed on taking lessons from the horrific disasters in the state.

At the same time, they expressed concern over indiscriminate construction in the Himalayan region and the huge rush of tourists.

Geology Expert at H.N.B. Garhwal University Dr Y.P. Sudriyal while pointing at the ever increasing crowd coming to the Himalayas including Kedarnath said, “If it is not managed properly, a tragedy like 2013 can happen again.

“After the 2013 disaster, we conducted a survey and found that the Kedar valley had a capacity for only 25,000 pilgrims to stay but on that night there were 40,000 people there.

“Now this balance has deteriorated further. The road which was earlier branded as ‘All Weather’ has now been branded as ‘Char Dham Marg project’.”

He said that landslides are occurring on this road throughout the year. In such a situation, gathering more and more people in Kedarnath should be avoided.

“We have to take care of the holding capacity of the Valley. We have also seen the result of unplanned development in Joshimath. On these issues, the government should listen to experts and involve them in the policy process,” he said.

Another chronicler of the developments Hridayesh Joshi said that a lot of work is being done against the opinion of scientists in Uttarakhand due to which the precariousness of disaster situations persists.

“We should insist on sustainable roads instead of wide roads. People are asking for roads in their villages but aren’t being heard. The formation of the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) after the Kedarnath disaster is a major achievement but we have not been able to develop a warning system in the Himalayas as is in place in the coastal areas.

“The 2021 Raini disaster is an example of this. We do not have a mechanism to monitor the lakes. Environmental concerns are brushed aside in lieu of development plans,” he said.

An SDRF Commandant Manikant Mishra, who was also a panellist, said that this disaster was not limited to Kedarnath but the entire Uttarakhand was affected by it. The SDRF was formed on the basis of those experiences.

In the 10 years since the disaster, there has been a change in the attitude of the administration and the public that such a disaster can come at any time and everyone has to be prepared for it.

He disclosed that at present, there are five SDRF companies deployed at 42 locations. It is planned so that one can reach any accident site in the shortest possible time.

“Now we have better forecasts too. Weather forecasts are coming up to the micro level. Due to the increasing number of tourists in the state, the challenges of dealing with accidents have increased.

“For this, the jawans are given training in personal rescue and paramedics. There is also a special team for high altitude rescue,” he said while advising the tourists coming to Uttarakhand to be alert about weather reports and travel keeping in mind the geography and climatic conditions.

Social activist Atul Sati who has been leading the Joshimath Bachao Sangharsh Samiti told The Citizen, “Had they implemented the recommendations of the Ravi Chopra Committee that was constituted after the Kedarnath tragedy, things would have been different. Today Joshimath is facing a threat to its existence.

“There are similar symptoms visible at many other places. There are reports of water seepage near Badrinath which is because of unscientific excavation being done there. There is no scientific disposal of debris and mud. The authorities need to answer what they exactly want to do knowing that the region is extremely fragile.”

He said that on account of the slow pace of relief and rehabilitation after the land subsidence uncertainty hounds the people of Joshimath as they stare at the monsoon that is knocking at the door. There are so many questions that remain unanswered.

Sati said that primary among them is the failure of the government to make public the probe carried out by scientific agencies into the Joshimath disaster, the failure to open a permanent rehabilitation office, the issue of people returning to their damaged houses ahead of the rains.

“We have given our suggestions to the District Collector for dealing with the situation in context of the forthcoming monsoon as sought. We have also expressed our resentment over the slow pace of relief and rehabilitation work,” Sati added.

The people have been pointing at the repeated road blocks on account of falling boulders when rains have even not arrived yet.

Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami had visited Kedarnath last week but his whole emphasis was on playing up the infrastructure development.

“Our double engine government is constantly working for the well-organised Chardham Yatra as well as for developing various religious places of Devbhoomi Uttarakhand,” Dhami had tweeted.

In fact social activists and concerned citizens in a solidarity statement with the ongoing struggle for justice and accountability in Joshimath issued a few months back had pointed out, “The neighbouring Bhagirathi river valley just ten years ago saw the massive Kedarnath tragedy that killed thousands of people.

“The Kedarnath flood and its aftermath were a typical illustration of what we described above – and scientists and environmental experts who studied the region presented research to establish that the unbridled construction, development footprint and the cascade of dams multiplied the impact of the flooding.”

They had further warned, “In the name of national interest, development, green energy and holy lands the top down ‘Parvatmala’ policies will tie us into a thread of destructive and extractive projects from airports, to highways, dams and commercial tourist centres.

“This does not reflect the vision nor the voice of the diverse people - especially the women, dalits and indigenous - inhabiting the mountains for whom this development is spelling more doom. The cost benefit analysis of this development agenda now stands amply visible which is why the people are seeking accountability. If these voices remain unheard, a wider struggle to assert our constitutional rights will have to be built.”