JOSHIMATH: Markets in Joshimath remained closed on Friday in protest against the commencement of construction of the Helang-Marwari bypass. As a mark of protest, traders staged a demonstration and tried to march to the construction site, which was averted by a heavy police force. The protesters were stopped near Animath, 1 km from Helang. A minor clash occurred between the police and the traders.
A large number of traders, including Vyapar Mandal president Nain Singh Bhandari, BJP leader Laxman Singh, had an altercation with the administration and police officials over their visit to the construction site.
The construction work of the Helang-Marwari bypass was suspended temporarily on January 5 this year after the subsidence problem aggravated in Joshimath. Since then, there was confusion about the construction of the bypass. In this regard, the Border Roads Organisation (BRO) had requested the government to allow the construction of the bypass at the earliest.
To start the construction of the bypass, experts from IIT Roorkee, PWD and THDCIL were asked to conduct a survey and submit a report. The experts from the three institutes had submitted their report to the government on April 11. Citing this report, Brigadier Prasanna S Joshi, chief engineer of BRO Shivalik range had requested to resume construction at the earliest.
Atul Sati, convenor of Joshimath Bachao Sangharsh Samiti, told this TNIE, "The proposed bypass has been continuously opposed since 1990 and once the Allahabad High Court had given a stay on it considering the geological condition of Joshimath. The intention of the government has always been to build it.
"Our concern is that digging a bypass at the root of Joshimath will pose a serious threat to the existence of Joshimath, so alternatives should be considered," Sati added.
Speaking to The New Indian Express, Joshimath Vyapar Mandal general secretary Jai Prakash Bhatt said, "The traders are demanding that the report of the expert committee that probed the causes of the natural calamity after the land submergence has not been made public yet. Nor have the residential buildings of Joshimath has been allowed to be rebuilt. On what basis is the government starting construction on the Helang-Marwari bypass?", questioned trade leader Bhatt.
Anand Sailani, head of the Gram Sabha Helang, told TNIE, "At present, given the increasing number of pilgrims going towards Badrinath Dham and the movement of tourists, there is definitely a huge pressure on traffic, due to which long jams on this route have become common". "We will welcome every decision taken by the government to solve the traffic problem in the public interest, keeping in mind the scientific approach and geological aspect", Sailani added.
