MoS Ajay Bhatt reaches Joshimath, holds discussions with officials

Minister of State for Defence Ajay Bhatt reached Uttarakhand's Joshimath town, where cracks have developed in buildings, roads among others in the wake of land subsidence and demolition is scheduled

Minister of State (MoS) for Defence Ajay Bhatt on Tuesday reached Uttarakhand's Joshimath town, where cracks have developed in buildings, roads among others in the wake of land subsidence and planned demolition is scheduled later in the day.

Bhatt held discussions with the administrative officials at the army base and took overview of the situation unfolding in the holy town that is seen as a gateway to Char Dham's Kedarnath and Badrinath.

Authorities were scheduled to demolish hotels and houses in Joshimath on Tuesday, which developed cracks.

Hotels Malari Inn and Mount View, which have developed more cracks over the last few days, will be demolished on Tuesday, officials said, adding that all residents have been safely evacuated from the 'unsafe zones'.

The demolition of buildings will begin under the supervision of a team of experts from the Central Building Research Institute (CBRI), Roorkee.

A team of the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) has been deployed at the site.

A team from the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) is also on standby to assist the district administration in the demolition work, as and when required.

"Experts are on the ground and the administration will take action on their directions and advice," said the NDRF.

The experts have decided to demolish Hotel Malari Inn and Hotel Mount View after they were declared unsafe.

Manikant Mishra, SDRF Commandant that their demolition is essential because there are several houses and hotels around, if these two sink any further they can collapse.

"So, experts decided to demolish them. CBRI experts are coming, they conducted a survey yesterday and now they will give more technical info on the same," he added.

Chamoli District Magistrate Himanshu Khurana said that the buildings marked under an unsafe zone in Joshimath town of Uttarakhand will be demolished from a scientific point of view under the supervision of the team of CBRI Roorkee.

Speaking to ANI, the Chamoli DM said that the district administration is making preparations to demolish the big hotels that have been hit by landslides.

"The hotels and houses which have come under the grip of the landslide have been identified. Buildings marked under unsafe zone have been vacated and the buffer zone in its vicinity is also being vacated. Scientists from CBRI Roorkee have been called to demolish these buildings. The team of CBRI will reach Joshimath today and they will identify the buildings which need to be demolished and under their guidance, further action will be taken. Keeping all the aspects in mind, these identified buildings will be demolished from a scientific point of view," said Khurana.

Meanwhile, the District Disaster Management Authority, Chamoli issued a bulletin related to disaster management in view of landslides in the Joshimath area.

According to the bulletin, cracks have been noticed in a total of 678 buildings in the Joshimath town area. In view of security, a total of 81 families have been temporarily displaced.

The administration has also distributed food kits and blankets to the affected families, as per their requirements along with the distribution of funds to procure essential household items.