Dehradun: Debris generated during construction of the all-weather Char Dham road is being dumped into rivers which could disturb their natural course and cause widespread devastation during monsoon, environmentalists have warned. The warning comes ahead of the Char Dham yatra which begins on Wednesday and will see lakhs of pilgrims from across the country visit the revered shrines of Gangotri, Yamunotri, Badrinath and Kedarnath from April to October. Citing a report by a Supreme Court appointed committee which had found that muck disposal by hydro-power plants in Bhagirathi and Alaknanda rivers had increased the impact of flash floods in 2013, experts said that no lessons had been learned from the disaster which left more than 5,000 people dead. The 899km all-weather road, Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s pet project which aims to boost connectivity to Char Dham shrines, is already embroiled in controversy for not obtaining environmental clearances and felling thousands of trees. The matter is being heard by the National Green Tribunal (NGT) which recently pulled up the ministry of road, transport and highways for not submitting a list of identified muck dumping sites for the project. J P Maithani, president of Agaaz, a non-governmental organisation in Rudraprayag district, said that they have identified 73 sites on the stretch between Rudraprayag and Joshimath where muck generated during construction was being dumped into rivers and forests. Maithani told TOI, “Residents of villages like Langasu, Songla, Nandprayag and Pursari have alleged that construction debris is being dumped into water bodies and forests. In villages of Maletha, Bagban and Khakra in Tehri, muck is being dumped on agricultural land. People of Rathura and Kamera villages in Rudraprayag have alleged that their agricultural land has been damaged but no compensation has been provided.” Environmentalists warned that dumping of construction debris in rivers could lead to a disaster in case of torrential rain during monsoon. Narender Dutt Semwal, secretary, Agastmuni Prayavaran Mitra Samiti, said, “Debris-filled rivers could swell during monsoon and may bring widespread devastation to towns and villages on Char Dham route.” Ravi Chopra, former chairman of a Supreme Court appointed committee which found that muck dumping from hydro-power projects into Bhagirathi and Alaknanda rivers heightened the impact of flash floods in 2013, said, “How can we forget 2013 floods where on one hand blasting of mountains triggered landslides and on the other muck dumping into rivers aggravated floods? It is shocking that the authorities have chosen to ignore the sensitivity of the terrain.”