PUDUCHERRY: Fifteen houses on the coast at Pillaichavady collapsed as high tides under the impact of cyclone Mandous eroded the coast on Friday.
The cyclone which is predicted to cross north Tamilnadu, Puducherry and adjoining South Andhra Pradesh coast between Puducherry and Sriharikota around Mamallapuram from midnight on Friday to Saturday has caused panic among the residents who resorted to a road blockade on the East Coast road demanding immediate measures for coastal protection. Traffic was disrupted on the ECR for over an hour due to the protest.
District Collector E Vallavan who rushed to the spot and inspected the houses, said that the 15 of them were in the stretch of the coast which is not protected by a sea wall of rocks. However, no one has been injured in the collapse as the houses were not inhabited. The families had been allotted houses in the Tsunami quarters, though they keep some of their fishing implements in the house.
For some time now the Pillaichavady coast has been witnessing erosion and house collapse, which got aggravated due to the high tides, strong wind and rains, resulting in the collapse of several houses. Even the Tsunami work shelter has also got damaged due to the impact of the high tides. It is a serious issue and action is being taken to protect the coast for which the PWD has moved a proposal to the government, said Vallavan.
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A proposal for constructing a groyne field of six groynes in the stretch of 330 metres coast, at an estimated cost of around ₹5 crores has been moved to the government for approval, said Radhakrishnan, Executive Engineer, PWD. Out of the 435-metre coast in the Pillaichavady area, 105 metres is protected, while 330 metres remain vulnerable to sea erosion, he said.
He also added that the groynes will be constructed of length 30 to 50 metres and perpendicular to the coast, by drawing funds from the Fisheries department. However, this would require an environmental clearance, before the project can be taken up.
Meanwhile, a team from the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) equipped has been stationed at Pillaichavady.
Chief Minister N Rangasamy, PWD Minister K Lakshminarayanan, MLA PML Kalyanasundaram along with officials of the administration visited the area and took stock of the situation.
There has also been a few incidents of trees uprooted and falling which were removed by the Forest and other departments. A few electric poles have also fallen in the rural areas, said the Collector.