Less than two years after the devastating July 30, 2024, landslides that flattened Mundakkai and Chooralmala, Wayanad has once again witnessed death and destruction. On July 7, 2026, a massive landslide struck the Kalladi tunnel construction site near Meppadi amid torrential rain, killing at least three people, leaving several others missing, and raising uncomfortable questions about the safety of major infrastructure projects in one of India's most fragile ecological landscapes.
As rescue teams continue their search, experts, environmentalists, and local residents are asking whether Wayanad is merely a victim of extreme weather or whether-related disasters are being fuelled by human decisions.
What caused the latest landslide?
The collapse occurred near the Meenakshi bridge, where construction was underway for the ambitious Anakkampoyil–Kalladi–Meppadi tunnel road project, intended to improve connectivity between Kozhikode and Wayanad. The landslide not only buried workers and vehicles but also destroyed a concrete retaining wall built to protect the excavation site. Nine injured people were rescued and shifted to hospitals, while several others are feared trapped beneath tonnes of debris. Rescue operations continued amid incessant rainfall and a red alert issued for Wayanad and Kozhikode districts.
Why it become a matter of national concern rather than a monsoon disaster?
This landslide is not being viewed merely as another rain-induced disaster because it occurred at the site of a major infrastructure project in a region repeatedly identified by geologists and environmental experts as highly vulnerable to landslides.
Unlike many natural slope failures, it occurred adjacent to an active tunnel construction zone where extensive hill cutting, excavation, soil dumping, and retaining structures had altered the landscape. The collapse destroyed the very concrete wall built to prevent slope failure, raising immediate questions about the adequacy of engineering safeguards and geological assessments.
Is Wayanad naturally prone to landslides, or is something changing?
Wayanad has always been prone to landslides due to its steep terrain, fragile lateritic soils, deeply weathered rock formations, and intense southwest monsoon rainfall. However, experts argue that natural vulnerability alone cannot explain the increasing frequency and severity of disasters.
Historical records indicate that landslides have repeatedly struck the Meppadi region for decades. Reports document major slope failures in the area since the 1960s.
Some of the significant recorded events include:
• A landslide in the Chembra hills in 1962.
• The 1984 Mundakkai landslide that claimed 17 lives.
• Major landslides around Chembra in 1996.
• The deadly Puthumala landslide of 2019 that killed 17 people.
• Fresh landslides in Mundakkai during 2019 and 2020.
• The catastrophic Mundakkai–Chooralmala disaster of July 2024.
• The latest Kalladi tunnel-site landslide in July 2026.
Are the landslides recurring in this area because the landscape has crossed critical ecological thresholds?
Yes. First, climate change has intensified extreme rainfall events. Instead of receiving steady monsoon showers over several days, Wayanad is increasingly experiencing short-duration cloudbursts that dump enormous quantities of rain within a few hours. Such intense precipitation rapidly saturates slopes and dramatically increases landslide risk.
Second, widespread human interventions—including road construction, quarrying, hill cutting, deforestation, and large infrastructure projects—have weakened already fragile hill slopes. Third, expanding settlements and development activities have placed more people directly in harm's way.
Why is the tunnel project at the centre of a controversy?
Long before the latest disaster, experts had reportedly expressed concerns about the engineering approach adopted at the construction site of the Anakkampoyil–Kalladi–Meppadi tunnel project. According to reports prepared after repeated inspections by a joint team of the Geological Survey of India (GSI) and engineering consultants, the shotcrete design used to stabilise the tunnel entrance was considered unsuitable for Kerala's continuously wet mountain conditions.
The chief engineers of the PWD and the Wayanad district collector held an online review meeting on June 12, 2026. It was observed that a large volume of excavated earth was stacked near the construction area. The Konkan Railway Corporation Ltd (KRCL), which executed the project, was instructed that no work should conducted during rainfall; labourers should not be deployed under hazardous weather conditions; and the accumulated earth should be removed. This was followed by another review meeting on July 1, 2026.
What did the meeting suggest?
• Suspending construction during the monsoon.
• Installing scientifically designed drainage systems.
• Reinforcing cracked sections using additional concrete stabilisation.
• Revising the slope protection design after consultation with geotechnical experts.
The reports warned that failure to implement these measures could trigger sudden hill-slope failures. Local residents have also alleged that excavated soil remained piled near the project site, temporary drainage arrangements were inadequate, and weak retaining walls had been constructed to protect the excavation. Some residents claim repeated complaints about these issues went unanswered.
What is the response of the construction company?
The construction company has rejected allegations of negligence. It maintains that all work complied with prescribed safety norms and environmental conditions, and that the disaster resulted from exceptionally heavy rainfall rather than engineering failures. The company has also stated that the excavated material was handled in accordance with approved standards and that the project was subject to multiple layers of regulatory oversight, including monitoring by bodies appointed under Supreme Court directions.
Were there warning signs before the disaster?
Perhaps the most troubling aspect of the July 2026 landslide is that several warning signs were reportedly documented well before the hill gave way.
According to GSI reports, cracks had developed near the tunnel portal—the point where the tunnel enters the hillside. The inspection reportedly took place barely a month before the collapse. The experts warned that unless immediate remedial measures were undertaken, the instability could develop into a major disaster.
The June 14 report is understood to have recommended suspending work during the monsoon, redesigning the slope stabilisation system, and ensuring proper drainage so that rainwater did not accumulate around the excavation site. It also suggested strengthening cracked sections through additional shotcrete and consulting geotechnical experts before proceeding further.
Did environmental regulators foresee these risks?
Following the 2024 landslides, the Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change reportedly sought additional clarifications before granting the second phase of environmental clearance for the tunnel project.
The Expert Appraisal Committee (EAC) is understood to have expressed concern that the proposed alignment passed through an environmentally sensitive portion of the Western Ghats, close to areas affected by previous landslides.
Eventually, conditional environmental clearance was granted in June 2025. However, it reportedly came with nearly 60 specific conditions intended to minimise ecological damage and reduce disaster risks.
Can this disaster be described as 'man-made'?
The late ecologist Madhav Gadgil, who chaired the Western Ghats Ecology Expert Panel, consistently argued that disasters across the Western Ghats cannot be understood purely as natural calamities.
His committee submitted a landmark report in 2011, which concluded that the mountain range was already under severe ecological stress due to unregulated quarrying, mining, large infrastructure projects, road expansion, deforestation, and indiscriminate construction.
However, it is equally important to recognise that no official investigation has yet concluded that the tunnel project directly caused the July 2026 landslide.
What role is climate change playing in Wayanad's recurring landslides?
Today, climate change is producing shorter but far more intense bursts of rainfall. These extreme precipitation events rapidly saturate slopes, increase pore-water pressure within the soil, and reduce the strength of weathered rock formations, making hillsides far more susceptible to collapse. When climate-driven extreme rainfall coincides with human interventions such as road cutting, tunnelling, hill excavation, quarrying, or deforestation, the risk increases significantly.
Is development incompatible with environmental protection in the Western Ghats?
Environmental experts argue that engineering solutions designed for relatively stable mountain systems elsewhere in India may not always be suitable for Kerala's unique combination of heavy rainfall, deeply weathered soil, and steep terrain. Supporters of the tunnel project, however, claim that modern engineering can safely overcome such challenges if projects are executed in accordance with scientific standards and environmental conditions.
The challenge is not choosing between development and conservation, but ensuring that development does not undermine the very landscape on which it depends.