IDUKKI: Cheruthoni town, which bore the brunt of unexpected flood after shutters of Cheruthoni dam were opened on August 9, is slowly limping back to normalcy. Barring a few, shops reopened and vendors resumed their activities, amid visitors flowing to watch the broken chappath (bridge) and banks of Cheruthoni river, including the private bus stand, which were washed away in the rush of water.
But, the situation is different in the rest of the district where uncountable debris flow, earthflow, landslips and landslides razed down the entire soil structure of the land.
While the district administration released a report numbering 1,800 landslips and 278 landslides during this monsoon, the actual count is much high, say locals.With road connectivity between Kattappana and Cheruthoni disrupted completely after Cheruthoni chappath was washed away, light vehicles are diverted via dam top road (atop Idukki and Cheruthoni dams). It may take several weeks to completely restore traffic along Cheruthoni-Adimali road, where landslides and debris flow were reported in more than 100 points on the 34-km stretch.Things are not so different in other arterial roads.
Eco sensitive area
Proving the observation of Western Ghats Ecology Expert Panel (WGEEP) led by Madhav Gadgil that entire Idukki district is an ecologically sensitive area (ESA) is right, massive landslides and landslips wreaked havoc, especially in Idukki, Udumbanchola and Devikulam taluks.
As per official statistics, 1,200 houses were completely and 2,266 houses partially destroyed, while thousands of hectares of land was washed away in debris flow and soil erosion. What raises concern among people is the entire soil structure has been altered and it has become more fragile, making it more vulnerable to imminent landslips.
“We predominantly observed debris flow, earthflow and landslides across the district, which are different mechanisms of the soil to cope up with torrential rain. Earthflow was noticed in 18 locations, from Khanapara in Rajakumari to Kallippara in Vannappuram. The district disaster management committee has already decided to conduct a geo technical study by a national agency like Geological Survey of India on the stability of the soil as per our requests,” said B Ajayakumar, senior geologist in Idukki.
According to Dr V S Vijayan, former chairman of State Bio-diversity Board and a member of WGEEP, people should be evacuated from landslide-prone areas. “People should not be allowed to build houses at least within 100 m from the course of water and slopes,” he said. Vijayan added the government should press for the implementation of Gadgil committee report, to avoid further loss in ecologically important Western Ghats.
“Vulnerable human inhabited places should be declared as ESAs to protect them from over-exploitation, which does not mean, the entire people should be evacuated. This is only to bring some changes in agriculture pattern, shifting people from high-risk areas and for leading an eco-friendly life there. Instead, leaders are talking about declaring ESAs in forests, which are protected areas that do not need further protection,” Vijayan said.