Hindu pilgrims visit famed Adi Shankaracharya monastery, in Joshimath, in India's Himalayan mountain state of Uttarakhand, Jan.20, 2023. Inside a shrine overlooking snow-capped mountains, Hindu priests heaped spoonfuls of puffed rice and ghee into a crackling fire. They closed their eyes and chanted, hoping their prayers would somehow turn back time and save their holy -- and sinking -- town.
"Cracks are widening every day and people are in fear. It's a time bomb," said Atul Sati, an activist with the Save Joshimath Committee. "It must be protected," said Brahmachari Mukundanand, a local priest who called Joshimath the "brain of North India" and explained that "our body can still function if some limbs are cut off. But if anything happens to our brain, we can't function. Its survival is extremely important."
Authorities, ignoring expert warnings, have continued to develop costly projects in the region, including a slew of hydropower stations and a lengthy highway. The latter is aimed at further boosting religious tourism, a key plank of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party. Some experts fear the project will exacerbate the fragile situation in the Himalayas where several towns are built atop debris.
"Our town is on the verge of destruction because of this project," said Atul Sati, the Save Joshimath Committee member.