The town of Uttrakhand's Joshimath is sinking with each passing and day and due to which many buildings, infrastructure is seen developing cracks.

The Himalayan town is facing a major crisis as hundreds of houses have developed cracks due to sinking or subsidence of the land in the region.

Several families had to shift to make-shift homes as the risk of living in their homes is severe.

As of January 9, 678 homes in nine wards in the state had developed cracks and is unfit for residing, as per the government figures.

According to an article by Quartz, Joshimath's buildings first developed cracks in the 1960s.

Experts are of the opinion that the sinking of the holy town in Uttarakhand is for many reasons.

The top ones are -

Due to the location of the town. The town is apparently located in a seismic zone V, the zone which is said to be seismically the most active region.

The increasing population and tourist attractions have compelled the town to come up with rapid urbanization like construction of roads, hotels which becomes risky for a town who had formerly experienced heavy landslides and earthquakes as well. Meaning- Most of the construction is done on the debris of landslides, leading to smooth and eroded rocks and loose soil on the surface.

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