By Shishir Prashant PrashantNews
Horrific videos of the Dharali disaster show a giant wave of water gushing through the area, crumpling buildings in its path. A tourist spot, Dharali which was bursting with hotels, resorts and restaurants suddenly turned into a plateau of debris within seconds.
But the fact remains that most of these hotels, resorts and homestays which mushroomed in Dharali in the past few years were constructed in gross violation of the environmental norms on the floodplains of Khirgard and close to Bhagirathi river.
Even the government closed its eyes on the eco-sensitive zone norms which prohibit new constructions along the holy river Bhagirathi.
The debris-laden Khirgard stream in the form of a huge wall of water struck Dharali on its original course where the settlements had come up razing hotels, resorts and other structures in its path, said several scientists. It is believed that Khirgard used to flow where the lost Dharali market once was bursting with tourists.
“This is the high time that there should be a study of all those areas where big settlements have come up at the floodplains of rivers and streams,” said Dr Sushil Kumar, a former scientist of the Dehradun-based Wadia Institute of Himalayan Geology (WIHG).
The state government tourism officials admitted that hundreds of hotels and resorts have been allowed to come up at the vulnerable places close to rivers and floodplains in the hill state without environmental clearances.
“Why Dharali? As we move from Rishikesh towards the hills of Garhwal, there are hundreds of such hotels along the rivers and floodplains,” said Kishore Upadhayay, BJP MLA from Tehri.
Experts said that Dharali should not be seen as a case in isolation.
In 2023, a big building housing a training academy for students crumbled just like a pack of cards at Maldevata area in Dehradun amid heavy floods in the Song river. The building was built in gross violation of environmental norms, experts said.
The Uttarakhand Vidhan Sabha is also situated on the Rispana river, a glaring example of the ignorance of the environmental norms. Bhagat Singh Colony and scores of other localities in Dehradun are built by encroaching lands belonging to Rispana and Bindal rivers in Dehradun.
In most of the cases, top government officials colluded with landsharks to allow such vulnerable structures on the floodplains, experts said. “These people are so powerful that if you raise your voice, you don’t know what will happen,”? said Prof Harsh Dobhal of Doon University.
Several petitions have also been filed in the Uttarakhand High Court in Nainital raising concerns over environmental degradation due to unauthorized constructions in Dehradun, Rishikesh and other areas. The High Court has already asked the government to clear all encroachments along Rispana and Bindal rivers. But the move is being opposed by BJP, Congress and some social groups in the hill state.
“These people have been living along the Rispana for over 40-50 years now. The government must rehabilitate them first before their eviction,” said senior Congress leader Rajkumar.
And make no mistake, the disaster also struck Old Tehri decades ago after the government gave proper clearance for the construction of the 2400 Mw Tehri hydel project which swallowed the whole historic town completely uprooting thousands of people despite vehement opposition by top environmentalists like Sunderlal Bahuguna. A section of scientists believe that the natural disasters have spiked in Uttarakhand after the construction of the huge 42 sq km Tehri reservoir.
