Disaster Déjà Vu in Uttarakhand: June Leaves Trail of Death, UDAAI Report Raises Red Flag
Dehradun | July 27
June 2025 turned into yet another tragic month for Uttarakhand — landslides, road crashes, and aviation mishaps left over 60 people dead, once again exposing how unprepared the system remains in the face of recurring disasters.
The Uttarakhand Disaster & Accident Analysis Initiative (UDAAI) report by Dehradun-based SDC Foundation offers a chilling account of what went wrong — and how.
The most heart-wrenching was the June 15 Kedarnath helicopter crash that killed seven people, including a toddler.
The Char Dham aviation services were suspended. A high-level probe was announced. But as Anoop Nautiyal, founder of SDC Foundation, put it — it’s the same old story of “oversight failure during peak season.”
> “Disasters in Uttarakhand are no longer exceptional events; they are becoming the norm,” Nautiyal said.
“Month after month, we’re seeing the same patterns — poor regulation, delayed response, and continued ecological neglect. The real disaster is the system’s failure to learn and act.”
And then came the crashes.
On June 6, six locals in Pithoragarh died after their vehicle plunged into the Gori Ganga river.
On June 26, a bus headed to Badrinath fell into the Alaknanda river — three dead, nine still missing.
Rain-triggered landslides battered routes across Chamoli, Uttarkashi, and Rudraprayag, derailing Char Dham Yatra traffic.
On June 28, a cloudburst-induced slide buried a laborers’ camp in Uttarkashi — two confirmed dead, seven feared buried under mud.
Meanwhile, near Syana Chatti, the Yamuna swelled, blocked by debris from illegal dumping and reckless construction, forming a temporary lake and posing fresh threats.
The report notes that over 1,100 landslide zones remain active in the state.
The PWD rushed in with 1,270 workers, 489 JCBs, 25 Bailey bridges, and 482 helipads. But it’s all still too late, too little.
UDAAI’s June report — the 33rd in the monthly series — isn’t just a list of tragedies. It’s a call to wake up.
The report demands:
🔹 Early-warning systems
🔹 Safer, regulated transport routes
🔹 Accountability in infrastructure projects
🔹 Real enforcement of environmental norms
“We hope these reports push politicians, bureaucrats, and civil society beyond tokenism,” Nautiyal said.
“Without systemic overhaul, we are merely waiting for the next tragedy.”
For a state that thrives on tourism and prides itself on spiritual peace, the cost of inaction is turning catastrophic.#UttarakhandDisaster
#UDAAIReport
#SDCFoundation
#WakeUpHimalayas
