PMO to hold high-level meeting on Joshimath sinking crisis

NEW DELHI: The Prime Minister's Office will hold a high-level meeting on the Joshimath crisis on Sunday afternoon amid alarm in the Uttarakhand region due to the sinking of land and cracks in houses at several places.

P K Mishra, the principal secretary to the prime minister, will hold the review meeting with the cabinet secretary, other senior officials of the central government and members of the National Disaster Management Authority, an official statement said.

District officials of Joshimath besides senior officials of Uttarakhand will also attend the review meeting through video-conferencing.

Uttrakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami visited Joshimath on Saturday to assess the situation on the ground, a day after he directed the immediate evacuation of around 600 affected families.

Dhami said Joshimath is an important place from the cultural, religious and tourism point of view and all efforts will be made to save it.

Joshimath, the gateway to famous pilgrimage sites like Badrinath and Hemkund Sahib and international skiing destination Auli, is facing a major challenge due to land subsidence.