The Joshimath land subsidence serves as a warning to Mussoorie. According to reports, the National Green Tribunal (NGT) said in a comment. Another authority previously raised a red flag regarding Joshimath in 1976. The Mahesh Chandra Mishra Committee had stated that major building construction should have been undertaken only after an assessment of the ground situation that year. However, our leaders and administrators rejected the advice, and the calamity occurred. Such an incident should never occur in Mussoorie. 

The reason behind earthquake

On the surface, there appears to be little comparison between the threats faced by our Himalayan resort and the devastation caused in Turkey and its nearby areas. Earthquakes do not originate on the surface. They begin deep under the earth, where the tectonic plates that support the continents are located. 

These plates float on slowly moving coils of magma, or molten rock. The Turkish disaster occurred in a region where three tectonic plates were colliding. Similarly, our Himalayas are rising as the Indian plate thrusts beneath the Eurasian plate like the blade of a massive bulldozer. 

However, this is not the sole reason for our mountain’s instability. They are also the world's youngest range, with little time to react to the stresses placed on them by living things, notably humans. It is like heaping heavy loads on the mountains. 

Previous study done on Mussoorie

Mussoorie's carrying capacity was studied and published in 2001 by a panel of specialists from the Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration. It came to the conclusion that "a significant fraction of land with a high degree of slope has been allocated to urban purposes. It is obvious that the structure cannot be expanded." Nonetheless, Mussoorie is overbuilt, with numerous inadequate and unsafe highrises. 

Ropeway project in Mussoorie to add more burden on mountains

There is a plan to build a ropeway from Dehradun to Mussoorie and to drill a tunnel through the western slopes of our threatened town on the grounds that it will reduce traffic congestion in Mussoorie. 

The NGT has reportedly said, “The proposed tunnel below Mussoorie is too dangerous, and so is the proposed ropeway from Dehradun to Mussoorie.” 

Doon Valley and Mussoorie are located in a seismically active area. Human activity adds pressure to the areas. A warning for Mussoorie is a warning for the whole state of Uttarakhand. 

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