Supreme Court To Hear Petition Regarding Declaration Of Joshimath Crisis As National Disaster
Joshimath, 16th January 2023: The petition seeking the intervention of the Supreme Court to declare Uttarakhand’s Joshimath crisis a national disaster will be heard today. According to the 16th January cause list uploaded on the Supreme Court website, a bench comprising Chief Justice DY Chandrachud, Justices PS Narasimha, and J B Pardiwala will hear the petition filed by Swami Avimukteshwarananda Saraswati.
Joshimath, the gateway to famous pilgrimage sites like Badrinath and Hemkund Sahib and international skiing destination Auli, is facing a major challenge of landslides. The apex court had on 10th January refused an urgent hearing on the plea saying that there is a democratically elected government to deal with the situation and all important matters should not come to the court. However, the court listed Saraswati’s plea for a hearing on 16th January.
The CJI had said that not everything important needs to come to the court. There are democratically elected bodies to see to it. At the same time, the petitioner argued that this incident happened due to large-scale industrialization and that the people of Uttarakhand needed immediate financial assistance and compensation.
The petition has also sought direction from the National Disaster Management Authority to actively support the residents of Joshimath in this challenging time. The petition states that there is no need for any development at the cost of human lives and their ecosystem, and if anything happens, it is the duty of the state and central government to immediately stop it on a war footing.
