JOSHIMATH BACHAO SANGHARSH SAMITTEE DEMANDS LEVYING OF PENALTY OF RS 20000 CRORES ON NTPC and USAGE OF THIS AMOUNT FOR THE REHABILITATION OF JOSHIMATH Sufferers!

The Joshimath Bachao Sangharsh Sammittee ( Committee struggling for Joshimath’s safety ) has demanded levying of heavy penalty of twenty thousand crores on the 520 MW, NTPC Tapovan Vishnugaad Hydropower Project and its subsequent closure along with the Highway to Badrinath and use the money of penalty on NTPC for providing relief and rehabilitation to the suffering populace of Joshimath. Confronting tremendous hardships and difficult times the residents of around nine hundred houses not fit to live in and others as well are in real mess with government housing them in a group of four to five persons in various rooms of hotels which themselves are full of cracks posing director threat to their lives. The chief of the Joshimath Bachao Sangharsh Samittee Atul Joshi who himself is a local resident blames the government for not even after twenty days of displacement building a single temporary hut to house the displaced persons having assured of constructing two thousand such structures forth with. Accusing the government authorities of misguiding the people of Joshimath and creating friction between the inhabitants of Joshimath and Bann gaon by settling the displaced persons of the holy town at Pipalkoti – Atul Sati said that we are not ready to accept this proposal of the govt which snatches the big playground of Pipalkoti populace meant for their sporting n other socio cultural activities. We rather want to have alternative houses in Joshimath itself at safer vicinity close to this traditional ancient town rather than going to Pipalkoti said Sati. He added that this is unambiguously an attempt of the state government to misguide us and create friction among us despite the very fact that the residents of Bann Gaon are joining us on 24 th December to express their solidarity with our cause and against the said proposal. Demanding implementation of the 2007 policy of the government for the settlement and rehabilitation of the disaster hit people, Atul Joshi said that the Chamoli, Garhwal administration instead of looking here and there in desperation, should straight away follow n implement this govt policy of 2007 which is in itself a complete solution package for our demands added Atul Joshi of Joshimath Bachao Sangharsh Samittee. While catagorically blaming the NTPC’s 520 MW Hydropower project and the Highway under construction to Badrinath as projects that led to the sinking of Joshimath and developing cracks in more than 900 hundred houses, Atul Sati emphatically said that these both the projects should immediately be closed and heavy penalty levied on them to the tune of Rs. 20000 crores using the penalty money for the overall welfare n well being of the uprooted people who have to be uprooted after their association with this holy town for centuries. Kindly recall that hundreds of residents and displaced persons of Joshimath have been protesting since the last three weeks having participated in Joshimath Bandh n protest demonstration in the city against their displacement demanding their immediate adequate rehabilitation and financial compensation including giving them fully constructed houses with all basic facilities. Emphasising on the 1500 years old healthy chronology of the ancient holy town of JOSHIMATH, Atul Sati said that they are not at all ready to leave this town come what may and want to be settled here only. Therefore any attempt of the government to settle them elsewhere won’t work he added.