Silkyara: A call to wake up to Himalayan threat

The Silkyara tunnel incident in Uttarakhand should be taken up by the central and the state governments in a serious manner once the trapped workers are rescued. It needs to be evaluated at greater depth. We have seen how Uttarakhand had witnessed horrific devastation in form of cloudbursts, landslides, deaths in one single day.

The big question that one needs to study is why this is happening. Are we destroying our nature to such an extent that it is unleashing its fury? The policy makers should devote more time to discussing such issues rather than indulge in accusing one another. It would not be of any help to the country if Rahul calls Modi ‘Panauti’ or BJP dubbing Rahul as ‘Mandabudhi.’ It is high time they focussed on real issues like the reported warming up of Himalayas.

There are several expert reports which opine that Himalayas are facing global warming and other pressures. The reports indicate that Himalayas are warming faster than other mountain ranges mostly due to increased use of reinforced concrete in building construction rather than replacing the traditional wood and stone masonry. This, the experts say was leading to heat island effect and adding to regional warming.

Recently, Baba Ramdev while interacting with media at Haridwar also expressed concern over the exploitation of nature in the name of development. Development is necessary but it should not harm the nature to such an extent that we face disasters, he remarked. Scientific reports indicate that the region is ecologically very fragile.

Hence, the government needs to give a serious thought to the Silkyara incident where falling debris blocked the tunnel from Silkyara to Barkot end over a 60-meter stretch.

The fundamental issue that the union government needs to answer is whether or not the construction agency had conducted proper in-depth geological and geotechnical studies during tunnel alignment. Such an investigation is conducted prior to any such construction by the construction agency and a report is submitted to the government. Such questions were even raised regarding the sinking of pillars of Medigadda LI scheme under Kaleshwaram project in Telangana. Some experts claimed that a three-level road was being built in the region. Shear rocks were visible throughout the area and heavy construction there could be dangerous.

Similarly, in Himachal Pradesh, too, one had seen how rain played havoc and how the road infrastructure got damaged. It is reported that the cost of repair of damaged roads cost the exchequer Rs 3,000 crore. The residents of Uttarakhand are now expressing serious concern over the exploitation of nature. The hills in this part, are “Kachchi mitti ke pahaad,” (These mountains are made of loose soil), the locals say. This, they feel, was one of the reasons for the Silkyara incident.

However, it is a real miracle that the 41 workers who are trapped inside the Silkyara tunnel are safe though it is over 11 days now and it is also commendable that the National Disaster Management Authority is making all efforts to rescue them. They have achieved great success in reaching out to them and maybe it is a matter of few more hours before they would be rescued. Thereafter, the government should not take this as lone incident but should take into consideration the earlier natural disasters that the region of Uttarkashi had witnessed and prepare a proper action plan to avoid any reckless construction activity in the fragile Himalayan region.