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Chamoli dreads rains

The recent earthquake in the Garhwal Himalayas, which killed over 100 people and left many injured and homeless, has brought to the fore larger issues which the central and state governments need to address in the long-term for the people of the region.

Though the region sits on the main central thrust -- one of the two faultlines across the entire Himalayan stretch, making it highly quake-prone -- almost none of the houses in the villages are quake-resistant.

The indigent hill people remain in dire need of aid for building new structures as they are not in a position to even repair the damage caused by the recent quake. The government has asked the Housing and Urban Development Corporation to open an office in the region to provide loans to them - a step, people in the devastated Chamoli town feel, should have been taken much earlier.

A tragedy waits to unfold in the region as the quake has shaken the foundation of many houses which, the villagers feel, will collapse in the event of rains. The entire affected area has also become prone to landslides, which could be triggered by rains.

Sporadic drizzles on Thursday and Friday sent shivers down the spines of the people who still dread to sleep in their 'now fragile' houses. ''Lord save us all. The first drops of rains warn me that the worst is yet to come,'' said Kamleshwari Maithani of Pipalkoti town, about 50 kilometres from Chamoli.

Roorkee University experts have warned that the damaged houses were unfit for habitation as they could cave in anytime.

The plight of those like Kamleswari goes unnoticed as the officials in Chamoli and Rudraprayag districts are still preoccupied in providing relief to the families which suffered casualties or were rendered roofless.

The tents being provided by the administration to the affected is an apology for shelter. The government needs to formulate a long-term disaster management plan to minimise damage in such eventualities in this vulnerable region, say social activists.

Most of the victims of last August's landslides in Rudraprayag district, which claimed more than 60 lives, are still in search of a secure shelter.

''After a few months, everybody will forget the disaster and nothing will be done to minimise damage in future,'' said Dr R N Dubey, an earthquake expert from the Roorkee University, which has sent a three-member team to assess the damage and make recommendations for future construction. Quake expert, Dr D C Roy and seismologist, Dr M L Sharma are the other members of the team.

Incidentally, the university had recommended the construction of such houses after the Uttarkashi quake of 1991. However, the recommendations have been consigned to the state archives.

The Centre yesterday decided to set up a task force to survey the damage in the region and recommend quake-resistant house designs.

''Houses in the region should be constructed on the lines of those in Latur,'' Dr Roy suggested.

The Roorkee team insisted that the guidelines of the Indian Society for Earthquake Technology and the Bureau of Indian Standards for both 'engineered' and 'non-engineered' structures were followed. ''Quake-resistant material will add only 6-8 per cent to the cost of construction and it should be made mandatory through a legislation,'' Dr Dubey felt.

This was echoed by Garhwal University Vice-Chancellor, Professor S Saklani who said a cell should be set up to ensure that houses are constructed as per the guidelines.

UNI

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