KOCHI: In the wake of the Wayanad landslide incident, the Kerala High Court, on Thursday, directed the state government to stop the excavation of soil from the steep hills until further orders were received from the court.
A Division bench comprising Acting Chief Justice A Muhamed Mustaque and Justice S Manu issued the order on a public interest litigation filed by S.Unnikrishnan of Thiruvananthapuram challenging the provision of the Kerala Minor Mineral Concession Rules.
The petitioner sought to declare section 14(2) of the rules unconstitutional and to give a directive to the State government to make the slope stability report mandatory for granting building permits in the hilly terrain with steep slopes.
The court ordered the principal secretary of the industries department to issue an order directing the geologists not to allow soil excavation from steep hill areas.
The court further observed that it found that there was no scientific method for doing a carrying capacity of hilly terrain. The excavation of soils from the hilly terrain shall not be allowed without conducting a scientific study.
The petitioner pointed out that Rule 14 of the Kerala Minor Mineral Concessions Rules 2015 deals with the issue of quarrying permits for ordinary earth. The indiscriminate quarrying of soil for filing or levelling purposes is creating severe environmental issues. Most of the hills in the state were razed for quarrying ordinary earth in the name of building construction and other developmental purposes.
The petitioner said that section 14(2) of the rules allowed excavation of earth from hilly terrain for the construction of buildings, only if a certificate on the stability of the slope is obtained from a reputable geotechnical investigation service.
The razing of hills was creating severe environmental impact leading to landslides. In fact, as per the rules, the local self-government institutions were vested with the discretion on whether a slop stability study report was required or not.