Uttrakhand's Joshimath area has been declared disaster prone with the increasing land subsidence and cracks detected in more than 500 houses, the families are being evacuated.

The most probable 3 reasons are:

1) Fragile ecosystem:the city was constructed on a landslide debris and is earthquake prone. The soil cannot with hold too much weight

2) Unplanned construction: as the place is tourist destination a lot of construction is done without planning. Hydropower project and helong bypass's construction were also going on where heavy machineries were used because of which there is movement in soil.

3) Climatic changes: uttarakhand has been facing extreme weather conditions like floods of 2013 and 2021, which increases the risk of landslides.

A report of 1970s warned that the joshimath area is deposit of sand and stone, hence it was not suitable for a township and still people didn't pay heed!