The crumbling town of Joshimath in the Indian Himalayas has sunk by 5.4cm in less than two weeks, satellite images from the national space agency show.
Large parts of the town in Uttarakhand state were declared unsafe for habitation earlier this week after about 700 of its 4,500 buildings developed large cracks because of subsidence.
The town of about 20,000 people sits at an altitude of 2,000 metres in the Chamoli district of Uttarakhand and is the gateway to many popular Hindu pilgrimage sites. Experts say it is built on the deposits of a century-old landslide, making it vulnerable to being destabilised by even slight triggers.
The Indian Space Research Organisation’s National Remote Sensing Centre released a report on Thursday with satellite images showing parts of the Joshimath had sunk by 5.4cm between December 27 and January 8.
This was caused by "a rapid subsidence event" that was most likely triggered on January 2, the report said, citing eyewitness accounts.
The area affected by the subsidence also increased, but remains confined to the central part of Joshimath.
In comparison, the rate of subsidence from April to November last year was 8.9cm, said the report.
Cracks began to appear in buildings and roads in Joshimath months ago but have been widening at an alarming rate in recent weekss. Many of the buildings have brown, muddy water oozing from them.
More than 100 families have been moved to safer locations and authorities have started demolishing two hotels deemed dangerous.
Residents have been forced to spend nights outdoors in the winter chill over fears their homes may collapse on them in their sleep.
Many desperately prayed for the weather to remain clear of rain or snow, which would normally be welcome as they bring in tourists that boost the town's economy.
“We are having sleepless nights but at least it is not raining or snowing here, otherwise the structures would come down to the ground,” Himanshu Khurana, who runs a homestay, told The National.
Environment experts have blamed rampant infrastructure building work for damaging the ecological balance of the region.
Vimlendu Jha, an environmentalist, pointed to a hydroelectric project being built by the National Thermal Power Corporation in the area and said that the town was beyond repair.
“Joshimath has been brought down by engineers! ... there is no scope of repair, no reverse gear, engineers, because they have eschewed understanding of geology and geography, in their education or practice,” Mr Jha tweeted.
“Joshimath disaster is the result of puncturing of aquifers by the NTPC engineers, by their tunnel-boring machines, through tunnelling under Joshimath, muddy waters seeping out from homes and the ground is a testimony of the engineered crime leading to aquifer breaches."
Cracks have now started to appear in houses in the neighbouring town of Karanprayag.
Authorities have sent two contingents of national disaster forces. Army helicopters are monitoring the developments and have been put on stand-by for an emergency.
Geotechnical experts are conducting a study and a team of experts from the National Geophysical Research Institute will reach the town on Friday to study the underground water channel.
Company profile
Company name: Nestrom
Started: 2017
Co-founders: Yousef Wadi, Kanaan Manasrah and Shadi Shalabi
Based: Jordan
Sector: Technology
Initial investment: Close to $100,000
Investors: Propeller, 500 Startups, Wamda Capital, Agrimatico, Techstars and some angel investors
SPECS
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Display: 21cm Liquid Retina Display, 2266 x 1488, 326ppi, 500 nits
Chip: Apple A17 Pro, 6-core CPU, 5-core GPU, 16-core Neural Engine
Storage: 128/256/512GB
Main camera: 12MP wide, f/1.8, digital zoom up to 5x, Smart HDR 4
Front camera: 12MP ultra-wide, f/2.4, Smart HDR 4, full-HD @ 25/30/60fps
Biometrics: Touch ID, Face ID
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In the box: iPad mini, USB-C cable, 20W USB-C power adapter
Price: From Dh2,099
PROFILE OF HALAN
Started: November 2017
Founders: Mounir Nakhla, Ahmed Mohsen and Mohamed Aboulnaga
Based: Cairo, Egypt
Sector: transport and logistics
Size: 150 employees
Investment: approximately $8 million
Investors include: Singapore’s Battery Road Digital Holdings, Egypt’s Algebra Ventures, Uber co-founder and former CTO Oscar Salazar
Dates for the diary
To mark Bodytree’s 10th anniversary, the coming season will be filled with celebratory activities:
- September 21 Anyone interested in becoming a certified yoga instructor can sign up for a 250-hour course in Yoga Teacher Training with Jacquelene Sadek. It begins on September 21 and will take place over the course of six weekends.
- October 18 to 21 International yoga instructor, Yogi Nora, will be visiting Bodytree and offering classes.
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- November 9 Bodytree is hosting a party to celebrate turning 10, and everyone is invited. Expect a day full of free classes on the grounds of the studio.
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Chancellor Rachel Reeves set markets on edge as she appeared visibly distraught in parliament on Wednesday.
Legislative setbacks for the government have blown a new hole in the budgetary calculations at a time when the deficit is stubbornly large and the economy is struggling to grow.
She appeared with Keir Starmer on Thursday and the pair embraced, but he had failed to give her his backing as she cried a day earlier.
A spokesman said her upset demeanour was due to a personal matter.
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Romarinho, Brazil
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Read part four: an affection for classic cars lives on
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Name: Qyubic
Started: October 2023
Founder: Namrata Raina
Based: Dubai
Sector: E-commerce
Current number of staff: 10
Investment stage: Pre-seed
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Catchweight 82kg
Piotr Kuberski (POL) beat Ahmed Saeb (IRQ) by decision.
Women’s bantamweight
Corinne Laframboise (CAN) beat Cornelia Holm (SWE) by unanimous decision.
Welterweight
Omar Hussein (PAL) beat Vitalii Stoian (UKR) by unanimous decision.
Welterweight
Josh Togo (LEB) beat Ali Dyusenov (UZB) by unanimous decision.
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Isaac Pimentel (BRA) beat Delfin Nawen (PHI) TKO round-3.
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Seb Eubank (GBR) beat Emad Hanbali (SYR) KO round 1.
Lightweight
Mohammad Yahya (UAE) beat Ramadan Noaman (EGY) TKO round 2.
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Alan Omer (GER) beat Reydon Romero (PHI) submission 1.
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Juho Valamaa (FIN) beat Ahmed Labban (LEB) by unanimous decision.
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Elias Boudegzdame (ALG) beat Austin Arnett (USA) by unanimous decision.
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Maciej Sosnowski (POL) beat Ibrahim El Sawi (EGY) by submission round 1.
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Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
Recent winners
2002 Giselle Khoury (Colombia)
2004 Nathalie Nasralla (France)
2005 Catherine Abboud (Oceania)
2007 Grace Bijjani (Mexico)
2008 Carina El-Keddissi (Brazil)
2009 Sara Mansour (Brazil)
2010 Daniella Rahme (Australia)
2011 Maria Farah (Canada)
2012 Cynthia Moukarzel (Kuwait)
2013 Layla Yarak (Australia)
2014 Lia Saad (UAE)
2015 Cynthia Farah (Australia)
2016 Yosmely Massaad (Venezuela)
2017 Dima Safi (Ivory Coast)
2018 Rachel Younan (Australia)
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SPECS
Toyota land Cruiser 2020 5.7L VXR
Engine: 5.7-litre V8
Transmission: eight-speed automatic
Power: 362hp
Torque: 530Nm
Price: Dh329,000 (base model 4.0L EXR Dh215,900)
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More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
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Dubai is on a mission to record good air quality for 90 per cent of the year – up from 86 per cent annually today – by 2021.
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