Once bitten, Kerala not shy to eye tunnel via Western Ghats

ByVishnu Varma, Kochi

Oct 31, 2024 03:00 AM IST

Despite a deadly landslide in Wayanad, Kerala’s government plans to build a controversial tunnel, raising environmental concerns amid local support for better access.

Two and a half months after one of the country’s worst landslides was recorded in Kerala’s Wayanad killing 254 persons and leaving another 47 missing, the state’s Left Democratic Front (LDF) government is going ahead with plans to dig a 8.7km-long four-lane tunnel through the heart of a fragile portion of the Western Ghats.

Indian Navy’s disaster relief team conducts search and rescue operation at a landslide-hit area in Wayanad. (PTI)

The government’s acknowledgement on Oct 11 in the Assembly that it will implement the controversial Anakkampoyil – Meppadi twin tunnel project was the first time after the July 30 landslides which flattened the villages of Mundakkai and Chooralmala that it indicated its resolve to go ahead with the controversial project which has raised concerns among environmentalists and some Wayanad residents.

One of the hills through which the tunnel will pass is that of which a portion broke off in the early hours of July 30 causing the landslide. Project documents show that the tunnel passes through several ecologically sensitive areas (ESA) which are prone to small and moderate landslides. Environmentalists argue that the project is not the kind of development that the government must push in a highly fragile region. The government believes the tunnel will decongest the existing road through Thamarassery, improve transportation, boost tourism, and reduce the commute time from Kerala to cities in Karnataka such as Mysuru and Bengaluru.

The project, envisaged in 2020 and currently estimated to cost 2134.5 crore with funding from the Kerala Infrastructure Investment Fund Board (KIIFB), involves building a four-lane, twin-tube unidirectional tunnel from Maripuzha in Kozhikode district to Meenakshi bridge near Meppadi in Wayanad district. Of the total 8.73-km, 8.11 km will be a D-shaped tunnel. The tunnel road will run through natural and reserve forests beneath hills such as Vavul Mala, Swargamkunnu and Chembra, the highest peak of the Western Ghats in Kerala. Once finished, it will serve as an all-weather road to Wayanad and act as an alternative to the existing Thamarassery Ghat road which has nine hairpin bends and is prone to frequent traffic jams and minor landslides during the monsoon.

In August last year, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan told the state assembly: “Kerala looks forward to the realisation of the tunnel (project) with much hope. Some technical aspects need to be finalised. The construction will begin after that.”

On October 11 this year, higher education minister R Bindu, speaking on behalf of PWD minister PA Mohammed Riyas, told the assembly that the government has acquired 90% of the forest and private land required for the project.

“The application for the final environment clearance is pending before the State Level Expert Appraisal Committee (SEAC). The tunnel work will be done in two packages. The financial bids for the first and second packages were opened in July and September this year respectively. Once we get the final environment clearance, construction will begin,” the minister added.

Environmentalists to move court

Activists and experts believe the tunnel will further exacerbate the loosening of the topsoil in the hill roads, destabilise already fragile slopes, cause landslides and interfere with the movement of wild elephants in the area. They point to concerns raised by SEAC in its meetings so far and complain about the lack of scientific studies on the topography of the area and the impact drilling can have on it.

“The government, in order to get project clearance from the Centre, submitted false details in its affidavits. It denied that the project area fell in an ecologically sensitive area (ESA). It also said no to possible displacement of people. The truth is that the project area falls in the red zone of the landslide susceptibility map and is prone to frequent landslides, especially on the eastern sides of the hills,” said N Badusha, president of the Wayanad Prakruthi Samkrakshana Samiti (WPSS).

To be sure, Kerala, and the other five so-called Western Ghat states have notified ESAs, despite a draft notification by the Centre on July 31 after the landslide.

The draft provides the extent of ESAs in each of the six states, Kerala, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat, and Goa. For example, in Kerala, following physical verification by Kerala government, 9,993.7 sqkm has been proposed for implementation of ESA, but, the draft clarified that the “actual area will be finalized based on the recommendation of the state, views of stakeholders and ESA Expert Committee.”

The 60 day period for public response on the draft notification expired on October 1.

Underlining the impact of the tunnel project, Badusha pointed to the fact that the mouth of the alignment in Wayanad is proposed to be just 800 metres away from Puthumala, the site of a 2019 landslide in which 17 people were killed. It is also less than 3 km away from Chooralmala, the village which lost more than half of its residents in the July 30 landslides.

The application for environmental clearance is pending before SEAC which, in a June review meeting, raised concerns about the stability of the hills where the tunnel is proposed to be built based on a field inspection report.

The minutes of the meeting recorded, “Environmental sensitivity of the site is high. Areas near the proposed tunnel road are classified as high or moderate landslide hazard zones….the stability analysis shows that chances of failure exist in the project areas. The overburden slide or flow down at the surface of overburden and underlying rock is a possibility.”

SEAC also confirmed that the project area fell within ESA limits and that it is close to a settlement of the tribal Kattunaika community, hinting at its possible displacement.

SEAC at the same meeting also warned of an escalation in human-elephant conflict on account of the project. “Any barrier at the proposed tunnel mouth in Meppadi would force wild elephants to utilise the route through Kalladi colony and nearby settlements which are much populated. Such a situation could lead to increased human-elephant interactions which could possibly result in conflict situations,” it said.

At the last meeting in September, SEAC decided to entrust a field inspection team to evaluate the additional documents submitted by the project proponent.

An environment impact assessment report, submitted by Konkan Rail Corporation Limited (KRCL) and KITCO to the government in October last year itself admits that the project area ‘is known for frequent landslides, especially during monsoon on the mountain slopes.’

But it said that the tunnel runs almost perpendicular to the mountain alignment and that vibration-induced landslips may be a possibility only at steep slopes where soil thickness is high. “Minimum tunnelling has been proposed at hill slope to avoid further disturbance,” it said.

WPSS has sent a memorandum to the Union Ministry of Environment and Forests requesting that it revoke the in-principle approval given to the project in April last year. The final environmental clearance has to come fromSEAC, he said.

“With a massive landslide being reported recently close to the project area, the government should have ideally dropped the project. But it is going ahead with it. So we are planning to move the High Court against it,” Badusha told HT.

Two weeks after the landslide, CM Vijayan, when asked by reporters about whether the government would rethink the tunnel project, claimed that tunnels globally are not known to cause disasters. “But it certainly must be studied. Let’s see,” he said, matter-of-factly.

The CPI, the second-biggest constituent in the LDF alliance and known for taking pro-environment positions, is also not very enthused about the project. CPI state secretary Binoy Viswam said in August, “In the case of Wayanad and particularly about its environment, we must think twice before doing anything. CPI’s stand is that proper scientific studies must be done before implementing the tunnel project. If we go ahead without conducting proper studies, it will cause concerns in the minds of people.”

‘Need an all-weather road’

That the project is facing opposition only from environmentalists and has bipartisan political support and backing from a large section of locals in Wayanad underscores the urgent need for an all-weather road to the hilly district.

Sukanya Ashin, a young ward member of the Congress in Meppadi panchayat, lost her family home and adjoining land in the 2019 Puthumala landslide. She and her husband’s family then relocated to Chooralmala, believing it to be safe, only to face the threat of a landslide again this year. Though her home was untouched this time, she said she lost many of her friends, acquaintances and relatives.

But despite her personal tragedies she still supports the tunnel project emphatically.

“Our only request to the government is to speed it up and make it a reality soon. The people of Wayanad are tired of the long, winding trip to Kozhikode through the existing ghat road. During medical emergencies, patients are currently dying en route to the hospital. If the tunnel road becomes a reality, it will also bring development and boost tourism in the area,” she said.

When asked about the threats of landslides and concerns raised by environmentalists, she said, “(Activists) know how to give long speeches. How does that solve the daily problems of our lives? All safety procedures should be taken by the government while executing the project.”

OR Kelu, the minister for welfare of SCs, STs and OBCs and an MLA from Mananthavady in Wayanad, said the project is moving ahead on the basis of proper studies and approvals.

“I believe the project was subjected to numerous studies whose reports have been examined carefully. Necessary approvals are being taken. Wayanad is a hill district whose people have to climb down and travel to various districts for their needs. The tunnel road will give them better and faster access to commute since the existing Ghat roads are not in good condition,” Kelu told HT.

CPM MLA Linto Joseph, from whose constituency the tunnel road is slated to begin, said, “The existing Thamarassery ghat road cannot be widened anymore due to safety concerns. So the only option to have better road access to Wayanad is by completing the tunnel project. Those travelling to Bengaluru from Kozhikode and other districts can easily take this route. Large cargo carriers can also shift from the ghat road to the tunnel to reach Wayanad faster.”

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