The Joshimath crisis has been a long time in the making. Various cities in Uttarakhand have been facing the repercussions of unchecked development — in 2003, a landslide in Varunavat destroyed hundreds of buildings; in 2013, a flash flood in Kedarnath claimed over 5,000 lives; in 2021, a glacial burst in Rishiganga left 140 people working on the Tapovan Vishnugad hydel project dead. After Joshimath, houses in Karnaprayag have begun showing cracks; Darjeeling cannot be complacent either. Such natural disasters are often the result of a complex amalgamation of factors. In fact, alarm bells had been rung in 1976 when a committee constituted to survey land subsidence clearly stated that construction work should not be undertaken in Joshimath as it sits on the unstable site of an ancient landslide. Several studies have flagged similar concerns since. But the Tapovan hydel project and the Helang bypass have continued to hollow out the ground beneath Joshimath.

The administrative obduracy can be attributed to successive state governments displaying a flagrant disregard for the delicate ecosystems of the Himalayas in their bid to bring ‘development’. Sustaining the lucrative, but ecologically damaging, tourism industry appears to be the principal motive. In spite of the terrain being difficult, tourism figures in Uttarakhand neared 25 million in 2015 and are expected to touch 67 million by 2026. Yet, the faulty prioritisation of economics over ecology continues at the policy level. The need to set the balance right cannot be overstated. A serious scrutiny of such activities as the damming of Himalayan rivers, construction of hydel projects, and other investments in infrastructure must be undertaken and the disaster management plan for Uttarakhand updated. But governments irrespective of political colour have other things on mind. Industrial depredations on ecologically sensitive zones are thus rising, protective regulations are being watered down, and the pursuit of an anti-ecological model of progress remains pervasive. Chamoli, incidentally, is the birthplace of the Chipko movement and its essence — establishing a symbiotic relationship between the fragile Himalayan ecology and livelihoods — remains as relevant. For this relationship to survive, community rights over forests, land and rivers must not be short-changed for development.