Doon Valley Floods, Cracked Homes, and Collapsing Highways: SDC Foundation’s September 2025 UDAAI Report Warns of Deepening Ecological Crisis in Uttarakhand
*Doon Valley Floods, Cracked Homes, and Collapsing Highways: SDC Foundation’s September 2025 UDAAI Report Warns of Deepening Ecological Crisis in Uttarakhand*
*The 36th consecutive report under the UDAAI initiative marks three years of continuous monthly documentation of Uttarakhand’s key disaster, climate events and major road accidents by SDC Foundation*
Dehradun: The September 2025 edition of the monthly Uttarakhand Disaster & Accident Analysis Initiative (UDAAI) report, released by Dehradun-based environmental action and advocacy group Social Development for Communities (SDC) Foundation, underscores how unplanned development, fragile geology, and climate extremes continue to push Uttarakhand into an ever-worsening cycle of disasters.
The report documents a grim series of events from the Kedarnath route tragedy that claimed two lives and injured several pilgrims, to the devastating floods and cloudbursts that ravaged Dehradun, Chamoli, and Pauri districts. In Dehradun alone, torrential rains and cloudbursts in Sahastradhara and Maldevta led to 27 confirmed deaths, 16 missing persons, and the destruction of over a dozen bridges and culverts. The deluge also left thousands stranded in Mussoorie and surrounding areas.
The September UDAAI report further highlights alarming administrative inaction, such as the failure to install early warning systems at the highly sensitive Vasundhara glacial lake even 11 months after survey completion. In Pauri’s Srinagar, residents were forced to abandon cracked homes allegedly damaged by blasting and tunneling for the ₹16,200 crore Rishikesh–Karanprayag rail line, while the Badrinath highway continued to crumble under persistent landslides.
The September report paints a vivid picture of cascading ecological stress where unsustainable infrastructure expansion and delayed mitigation are compounding disaster risks across the Himalayas. Experts cited in the report, including IPCC author Anjal Prakash and campaigners like Suresh Bhai, warned that “unscientific construction is destabilizing slopes” and that “such projects are becoming
disaster multipliers” rather than safeguards.
Commenting on the findings, Anoop Nautiyal, Founder of SDC Foundation, said that the Doon Valley floods and the continuing instability of Uttarakhand’s mountain slopes are not isolated events but are warnings that our development path is unsustainable. Uttarakhand’s disaster story is increasingly a man-made one. Without ecological sensitivity, disaster preparedness, and climate-resilient governance, the situation will only worsen.
The report also notes that 50 days after the Dharali tragedy, the once-thriving village remains deserted symbolizing both the human cost and the state’s slow recovery mechanisms.
Marking its 36th consecutive edition, the UDAAI initiative has completed three years of uninterrupted monthly documentation since its launch in October 2022. The initiative continues to serve as a vital record of how climate change and misgovernance are transforming Uttarakhand’s disaster landscape.
Anoop Nautiyal said that SDC Foundation will soon release a special three-month monsoon feature covering the period of July to September 2025, compiling insights from recent disasters across the state. The release will coincide with the state’s 25th statehood anniversary, aiming to trigger a deeper conversation on resilience, responsible planning, and sustainable mountain development in Uttarakhand.
