A day after a giant boulder hit the famous Gurudwara complex at Manikaran killing seven, the Kullu administration on Wednesday slapped a notice on Manikaran Gurudwara Management Committee ordering immediate evacuation of the ill-fated building. The tragedy also raised serious questions on alleged violations committed in construction of the eight-storey building at an ecologically fragile site without obtaining necessary permissions. Within hours of the accident, sub-divisional Magistrate Kullu sent two notices to the Gurudwara management body asking them to vacate the building. The SDM threatened to take legal action if the orders were not complied with. He also asked the Gurudwara committee to submit papers, if any, relating to approvals obtained for the construction of the building. The Gurudwara committee has been given a month's time to reply to the show cause notice. [related-post] “If the building was illegal and then used for lodging pilgrims, it would attract legal provisions for endangering lives of the individuals," said a police officer at Kullu. Seven pilgrims, all hailing from one village in Sangrur district of Punjab, were killed while 11 others were injured after a boulder ripped through the sarai bhawan of the Manikaran Gurudwara. The building, besides being reported to be illegal, faces fresh dangers putting the lives of pilgrims at risk. The NDRF, who were involved in the rescue operation on Tuesday, did a thorough recce of the vulnerable mountain today. It informed the local administration that at least three more landslides can happen at the same site because the hill was rendered completely unstable. The building should be vacated immediately, they advised. "The NDRF personnel were asked to climb up the rocky mountains and find if there were chances of such a calamity in the near future. I have also written to state Geologist to send the teams to study the rock structure and possibilities of falling boulders. We may have to take some scientific measures either to prevent future happening or dismantle the lose rock. There will always be a lurking danger of loss of lives if necessary steps are not taken," said Deputy Commissioner Rakesh Kanwar. "The whole structure seems to have been built with obtaining any approvals, or ensuring the safety of human lives. It's sheer luck that tragedy happened during the day time otherwise the toll could have been very high,” he said. The deputy commissioner also wrote a detailed letter to all the SDMs asking them to send notices to all institutions and religious bodies seeking details about any constructions they had raised and if any permissions were taken.
