By Ranjona Banerji
I’m sticking with Joshimath. Because I am intrigued that in spite of clear evidence of government sanctioned and approved construction and the, ahem, “dream” project of the Prime Minister leading to the destruction of this Himalayan town, our courageous media outlets are unable to come out and say it.
I found this marvellous line in an India Today report “decoding the reasons” behind the collapse of Joshimath. The section about the Badrinath section of the Char Dham Yatra project says: “The project has been on the hitlist of environmentalists”. Well, the environmentalists were obviously correct about putting the project on their “hitlist” because all their fears have come true in the worst possible way. Not only that, the highway project is presented as a some great boon, in spite of the untold damage it has done to the Himalayas. Which this report is about.
Thus, the gold standard of journalism manages to write a report listing the reasons for the collapse of Joshimath, include the Char Dham project and yet somehow take a dig at environmentalists without mentioning that they were right.
Such levels of fear of politicians have now surpassed all democratic levels and taken us straight to authoritarian regimes. All right, all right, we know that already. But it still surprises me, I don’t know why.
https://www.indiatoday.in/science/story/rapid-urbanisation-tectonic-faultlines-decoding-the-reasons-behind-joshimath-sinking-2320673-2023-01-12
The immediate problem for Joshimath is the proliferation of hydro projects in the Himalayas. The town is sandwiched between two projects, both of which were damaged in the Chamoli glacier burst of 2021. But as this report in The New Indian Express, by those pesky environmentalist and activist types, the problems caused by the Char Dham project are never far away:
https://www.newindianexpress.com/opinions/2023/jan/13/joshimath-disaster-a-result-of-deliberate-negligence-2537265.html
The last point in this 10-point report by NDTV on Joshimath mentions widening roads – without further clarification – as a cause for the destruction of the town:
https://www.ndtv.com/india-news/in-joshimath-danger-zone-demolitions-resume-after-new-deal-10-points-3686339
It also allows the chief minister to get away with saying that “Sending a message outside Joshimath that the entire town is sinking is wrong. It will adversely impact the local economy”. That the town has effectively been destroyed by political pressure and collaboration is thus neatly sidestepped. And responsibility shifted to those who warned about the collapse of Joshimath rather than those who caused it.
Nothing to see here, people, move on. The Prime Minister himself cannot be questioned. Not in person because that is verboten. And rarely by proxy or just by shouting at street corners because of intense fear. He therefore is off on his usual publicity jaunts. Currently, welcoming people to the vibrancy of India. As long as vibrations below your feet caused by bulldozers and earthmovers don’t destroy the ground you’re standing on.
What will it take to wake the media up? All of the media, I mean.
Evidently, the destruction of a town is not enough. How sad for the people of Joshimath, but it’s time to move on to the next cause of excitement.
Therefore, I regret to inform you that the chronicler of invented RSS-BJP history, I regret further that he is not good enough to even be called the Leni Riefenstahl of India, has not been “shortlisted” to win an Oscar. In spite of his own excitement at his own fake news.
The Kashmir Files has not been shortlisted for Oscars 2023; claims by film crew, media false
Welcome to vibrancy!
Ranjona Banerji is a senior journalist and commentator. She writes on MxMIndia on Tuesdays and Fridays. Her views here are personal.