Is Bageshwar the next Joshimath?

Could Bageshwar in Uttarakhand be the next Joshimath and experience land subsidence? An expert government panel has found that soapstone mining is leading to ground deformations, cracks, land subsidence (sinking), and rockslides.

The report was recently submitted to the National Green Tribunal. It had surveyed 61 soapstone mines in the Bageshwar, Kanda, and Dugnakuri tehsils or sub districts.

The Indian Express reported that “steep excavation practices, lack of adequate slope support, dumping of material into water sources, and encroaching into agricultural and residential areas” were highlighted by the report.

These, according to the daily, had compounded the risk. Bageshwar lies in seismic zone V and is thus at the highest risk of earthquakes.

According to the panel findings, mining activities in Bageshwar are linked to landslides, ground cracks, and sinkholes.

The Uttarakhand High Court banned mining in Bageshwar on January 10 this year over concerns that houses had developed cracks and water resources were drying up due to land subsidence, a phenomenon seen in the town of Joshimath a few years ago.