THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Despite repeated collapses raising safety concerns, the district disaster management authority (DDMA) and Varkala municipality authorities are struggling to enforce parking regulations at the helipad on the Varkala Cliff.
Last week, a significant portion of the cliff collapsed close to the helipad, where hundreds of visitors arrive in their vehicles every day. The Geological Survey of India (GSI) has also given short-term recommendations to the DDMA to regulate parking on the cliff as it could escalate erosion.
Following the collapse last week, the district collector convened a meeting to address the safety concerns at the cliff and directed the officials to ban parking within 20 metres of the edge of the cliff at the helipad.
“The vehicles come in large numbers every day and the parking issue becomes worse in the evenings. Even after last week’s collapse, there is no respite in the parking woes. People are parking their vehicles in dangerous areas,” said Sanjay Sahadevan, advisor to Varkala Tourism Development Authority (VTDA).
On Friday, following the direction from the district collector, a team led by the deputy director of disaster management visited Varkala Cliff.
“We will be submitting a report to the district collector soon. A decision was taken to curb parking within the 20-metre area of the edge of the cliff,” said an official of DDMA.
A lack of coordination between various departments is becoming a major challenge in preventing the conservation of the cliff.
The Varkala municipality authorities are yet to take any solid steps to relocate parking from the highly vulnerable helipad.
“We are planning to find an alternative parking area. We are exploring the possibilities of acquiring available government land in the vicinity,” said a senior official of Varkala municipality.