Himalayan youth groups raise voice from Joshimath to save Himalayas

For the last 100 days, the people of Joshimath, under the leadership of the Joshimath Bachao Sangharsh Samiti, have been fighting to save Joshimath, a town which has been sinking for the last several months in Uttarakhand. Today a team of activists from ‘Youth for Himalaya’, a platform formed by youths from various Indian and Himalayan states, has arrived here to support the struggle of Joshimath!

‘We condemn the apathetic attitude of government structures towards the people affected by this policy-generated disaster. And today hundreds of citizens and youth groups from Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Sikkim etc. have raised their voice to save the Himalayas in support of the struggle for Joshimath. It has been made after taking inspiration from the ongoing struggle of the people against it. We believe that the issue and fight of the entire Himalayas from East to West is one and will have to be fought for simultaneously.

For a serious tragedy like Joshimath, firm steps were not taken by the government on the kind of strategy that should have been made on a large scale by taking the affected people along – this is condemnable. For the last three months, the people of Joshimath are struggling for this. The Joshimath Tragedy remains a major cause of concern for the people of the entire Himalayan region as this crisis has raised alarm about the future of the Himalayas.

Since December 2022, scary pictures coming from Joshimath city have been continuously in the local, national and international news. Even though the news has reduced now, but the local people have been waiting for 100 days for the government to listen to them. Local people are demanding facilities like compensation, rehabilitation but they are being called anti-national, anti-development and even spreading false news. It is necessary to reiterate here that from 1976 to 2022 public, intellectuals and scientists were warning the state and central governments about the geological condition of Joshimath, but they have been continuously ignored.

Joshimath Bachao Sangharsh Samiti on the neglectful attitude being adopted by the government has said that “We give ten days time to the government to prepare a high-level meeting for the future plans to deal with this tragedy, involving the members of Joshimath Bachao Sangharsh Samiti. Form a committee. Information about the real situation, its seriousness and nature of the Joshimath tragedy should be made public.

Life of thousands of people standing on the brink of danger is becoming a common thing. Although hundreds of families are still visible directly from Joshimath Dhanswa, but indirectly the people of the entire area, shopkeepers, laborers, farmers, employees, students, people associated with tourism business, taxi drivers, horse-mule drivers , Its effect on religious places is very dangerous.

Apart from this, if we look at the last hundred days, such incidents are happening continuously in Himalayan states and union territories like Ladakh, Jammu, Kashmir, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Sikkim, Meghalaya etc. For all this, big projects being made by governments in the name of development like big dams, hydroelectric projects, roads, tunnels, flyovers, airports, big industrial projects, etc. are directly responsible, which are very dangerous for the delicate ecosystem of the Himalayas. Are.

Ritika Thakur said it is important to note that time and again, from 1976 till June 2022, the government and local authorities have casually ignored the potential landslides of this city, especially in the last two decades, in the name of green development But commercial and mega infrastructure projects were approved. The most destructive activities are the setting up of the 520 MW Tapovan Vishnugad project and the Char Dham project.

To make matters worse, the upper reaches of the Ganga river basin are witnessing frequent climate change catastrophic events – such as the one at Kedarnath a decade ago and at Rishiganga just above Joshimath in 2021. There is enough scientific evidence from both disasters to show that the scale of the impact was multiplied due to large-scale commercial construction in these areas – but the authorities and companies, protecting their own interests, passed on the risk to the local people. Have given.

The incident of Joshimath collapse is not the first and the last incident, nor is it bent on establishing such a natural and normal government. Such landslides and landslides have come to the fore not only in Joshimath but in all Himalayan states like Doda, Ladakh, Himachal, Sikkim etc. Sumit said that ‘and the entire Himalayan region, which is also in the grip of water and air crisis – due to such destructive development policies, forests are being exploited and mountains are being converted into business buildings by making hollows. It has proved to be dangerous for the local people and the environment, and such policy-generated disasters will take a more frightening form in the future, so we are not in favor of their destruction.

Ruchit Asha Kamal from Hyderabad has said that – Joshimath of Uttarakhand is a part of this country. This does not mean that such destruction should be allowed to happen in the name of national interest. This is not at all good for the future of the country as a whole. Apart from supporting the demands of Joshimath Bachao Sangharsh Samiti, we on behalf of Yot for Himalaya will run a campaign in the entire Himalayan region with the following demands.

Today on the appeal of Youth for Himalaya, many cities of the country – Wived Patel, Ghaziabad, Rise of Diwang, Arunachal Pradesh, No Means No Kinnaur, Climate Front Jammu, Climate Front Hyderabad, Nature Human Centric Movement Jodhpur, Nature Club Visakhapatnam Andhra Pradesh, Tandi Various programs for the struggle of the people of Joshimath were organized by Dam Sangharsh Samiti and Save Lahol, Himachal Pradesh etc.

▪️FCA 2023, which has been made to open forest land for projects within 100 kilometers from the country’s border area – should be canceled through the amendment bill.

▪️Big infrastructure projects like big dams, four lane roads should be banned.
▪️Laws that strengthen the rights of communities dependent on forests such as nomads, Dalits and tribal people over forests and resources should be strengthened and implemented.

▪️The disaster affected people in the Himalayan region should be rehabilitated at a fast pace.
▪️Participatory and sustainable land use planning should be done.