At least fifteen families were forced to abandon their homes overnight in Himachal Pradesh's Shimla district after dangerous cracks appeared in residential buildings and a hotel. The incident, linked to blasting work for an under-construction National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) tunnel, has sparked fear and anger among locals in the Chalaunthi area near Sanjauli.
Families Rendered Homeless in the Cold
According to officials, the crisis unfolded on Friday night when cracks rapidly widened in two residential buildings and a hotel in the Chaulanti area. Sub-divisional magistrate (SDM) for rural Shimla confirmed that over 40 people from 15 families, along with tourists and hotel staff, had to vacate immediately. While the administration provided shelter for most, some chose to stay with relatives or friends.
Residents pointed directly at the ongoing tunnel construction for a four-lane road between Bhattakufar and Chalaunthi. "Minor cracks started appearing about three days ago," Puja, an affected resident, told PTI. She stated that despite complaints to the construction company and district administration, officials initially downplayed the danger. The situation turned critical by Friday evening, forcing a sudden evacuation order from the company itself.
Public Outcry and Official Response
The affected community alleges negligence, claiming their repeated complaints about vibrations from blasting were ignored. "We have put all our earnings into constructing our houses. Where will we go now?" questioned one distressed resident. Anger is widespread, with locals demanding an immediate halt to the tunnel work.
The repercussions extended beyond homes. Cracks also developed on the Sanjauli-Dhali bypass road, leading authorities to stop vehicular traffic as a safety precaution. Responding to the crisis, Himachal Pradesh's Rural Development and Panchayati Raj Minister, Anirudh Singh, visited the site on Saturday.
Minister Singh announced that directions have been issued to stop all blasting activity at the site. He also instructed the NHAI to provide immediate compensation to the displaced families. The minister added that he has discussed the serious matter with Union Minister Nitin Gadkari and senior NHAI officials.
A Pattern of Concerns in the Hills
This incident has revived memories of similar infrastructure-related subsidence crises in the fragile Himalayan region. Notably, on June 30, 2025, a five-storey building collapsed in Bhatakuffar, with residents then too blaming irregularities in the NHAI's four-laning project.
The situation also draws uneasy parallels to the Joshimath land subsidence disaster in Uttarakhand about three years ago. There, unchecked construction and development projects led to severe cracking and sinking of buildings. An ISRO report at the time had recorded significant land subsidence in Joshimath, highlighting the acute vulnerability of these mountain ecosystems to intense construction activity.
The current evacuation in Shimla underscores the critical need for stringent safety protocols and community consultation in hill infrastructure projects to prevent such alarming displacements and property damage.
