Friday, 24 November 2023 | Gajendra Singh Negi
Cry of Himalayas
Coming close on the heels of the rain- triggered disaster in Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand, the tunnel collapse incident in Silkayara, Uttarkashi is another grim warning by the Himalayan mountains ravaged by relentless human activities in the name of development. The monsoon rains this year had wreaked havoc in the stretches of what is being claimed as ‘All Weather’ road. The government should understand that Himalayas are the youngest mountains of the world and should be treated like a precocious infant. The digging of tunnels, incessant blasting, gouging for broadening of roads and other development projects and haphazard construction activity are creating trouble for this geologically sensitive and tectonically unstable area. The authorities should try to understand the signals the Himalayas have been giving out in the forms of recent tragedies like 2013 Kedarnath deluge, the glacier break tragedy in Rishiganga basin that destroyed two hydro power projects and killed hundreds, Joshimath subsidence and others. It is high time that the government should revisit its development model for the Himalayan states and set in place a system which focuses on preserving this pristine yet precarious mountain range.
Criminal neglect
With the protracted rescue operation to evacuate stranded labourers in Silkyara tunnel in Uttarkashi entering the final phase and their safe exit being anticipated with bated breath by everyone, the role of the agency National Highways and Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited (NHIDCL) and Navayuga Engineering construction limited, the company entrusted with the task of digging the tunnel, should be brought under strict scrutiny. Prima facie, many irregularities in the construction of the tunnel such as not digging an Adit or escape tunnel and doing away with the reinforcement of the fragile section of the tunnel that caved in on November 12 to precipitate the crisis are visible. The callousness of the company can be gauged from the fact that in the initial part of the rescue operation, it averred that there are 40 labourers in the tunnel but later the figure rose to 41. After the task of saving precious lives of trapped labourers is over, a case of criminal neglect to put the lives of labourers in jeopardy should be registered against the company. The government should also recover the entire cost of the mega rescue operation which involved mobilising experts, heavy machinery and equipment from the company in order to teach it a lesson and setting up an example for the future.
Plan backfired
Doing an extra bit by an associate professor posted in the government nursing college Champawat to impress the Minister of the department has boomeranged on him. This fellow, Ram Kumar Sharma, said to be eager to get transferred to Dehradun on a plum assignment, went to the election- bound Rajasthan which happens to be his home state where the Cabinet Minister Dhan Singh Rawat was campaigning for the party candidates. As luck would have it, the officer was seen in a picture posted on social media by the minister himself in which he was being felicitated by the supporters of the saffron party. Sharma was recognised immediately and the picture went viral. Grabbing the opportunity, the opposition Congress has lodged a complaint with the Election Commission of India, citing his conduct as violation of the service rules. His transfer to the desired position has now been put in the cold store.
