Overview

• The National Green Tribunal ordered that mining in geotectonically sensitive zones remain suspended until a comprehensive seismic assessment is completed and vetted by a competent authority.
• A government committee surveyed 61 soapstone mines across Bageshwar, Kanda and Dugnakuri tehsils and documented vertical cuts without benches, debris dumping into natural drains and mine encroachment near homes and springs.
• Satellite imagery and field inspections confirmed ground deformation, spring depletion and early subsidence patterns that closely mirror conditions preceding the 2023 Jyotirmath collapse.
• The panel urged mandatory slope stability analyses, real-time seismic monitoring, digitisation of mining leases, mapping of local water sources and strict enforcement of buffer zones.
• Residents of Kanda-Kanyal valley report recurring landslides, structural cracks in houses and declining crop yields, intensifying calls for swift implementation of the committee’s safety recommendations.