Doda/Jammu: Nineteen families have been safely evacuated after cracks appeared in their houses in a village in Doda district of Jammu and Kashmir. Officials gave this information on Friday. The authorities also declared a mosque and a religious school for girls in Thathri’s Nai Basti village, 35 km from Doda town, along the Kishtwar-Batote national highway, unsafe.
Cracks started appearing in some structures in the village a few days ago, but Thursday’s landslide worsened the situation, taking the number of damaged buildings to 21.
Sub-Divisional Magistrate (Thathri) Athar Amin Zargar said, “We have shifted 19 affected families to a safer place after the houses became unsafe. We are monitoring the situation and taking necessary steps to ensure their safety.
He said that the Deputy Commissioner and Senior Superintendent of Police visited the spot and assured all possible help to the affected families.
Zargar, however, refused to compare the situation with Uttarakhand’s Joshimath – the gateway to famous pilgrimage sites like Badrinath and Hemkund Sahib – which is facing a major challenge due to land subsidence.
Zargar said, “It would be an exaggeration to compare the situation of the new township with the sinking Joshimath. We are facing the problem of landslides and geologists from the Chenab Valley Power Projects and the National Highways Authority of India have already inspected the site.” ”
While some families have shifted to a temporary shelter set up by the district administration, many others have returned to their ancestral homes.
“We are making all necessary arrangements including food and electricity at the camp site,” Zargar said.
Zahida Begum, whose family was shifted to a temporary place, said she has lived in the village for 15 years and was shocked to see cracks in the concrete houses.
Demanding proper rehabilitation of the affected families, he said, “There is panic among more than 50 families in the village. Most of the structures have developed cracks after Thursday’s landslide.”
Another local resident Farooq Ahmed said that 117 members of 19 families of policemen, ex-servicemen, defense personnel and laborers were shifted. He said that the new township was developed about two decades ago and there was no such problem.
“We request NGOs and philanthropists to come forward and provide assistance to the affected people,” Ahmed said.