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HC gives Uttarakhand 9 months to finalise rehab plan for 2013 Kedarnath flood victims
Dehradun: Uttarakhand high court has directed the state to decide on compensation and rehabilitation for residents who lost their homes near Kedarnath during the 2013 disaster within nine months.
Justice Manoj Tiwari's single bench directive came after the court restored a petition that had earlier been dismissed due to the petitioners' absence.
Hem Chand, Bose Mohan and Arjun Kumar had filed the petition in July 2016, seeking compensation and space allotment near the 50 to 52-foot-wide passage in Kedarnath. The court had dismissed the case on July 23, 2020, as the petitioners and their counsel failed to appear during multiple hearings.
In May 2023, the petition was reinstated with its original number and a cost of Rs 2,000 was imposed.
The petitioners said their homes were among those destroyed during the June 2013 disaster, which left more than 4,000 dead and thousands displaced. Kedarnath was one of the worst-affected areas. Over 3,300 homes were destroyed, and many families remain without permanent rehabilitation more than a decade later.
During the hearing, the state counsel suggested the case be disposed of by allowing the petitioners to submit a formal representation.
The court accepted the suggestion and observed that the authorities had not yet assessed the petitioners' compensation claims. It disposed of the plea with permission to approach the secretary, rehabilitation, Uttarakhand. The court said that if the petitioners submit their representation within three weeks, the state must decide on it in accordance with the law within nine months.
Although the state implemented initiatives such as the Uttarakhand Disaster Recovery Project and amended its rehabilitation policy in 2017, progress has been slow. Many affected residents have criticised the delay in land allocation and compensation. Despite central funding and World Bank assistance, several hundred villages in the Himalayan region still await full resettlement.
