Govt. floats safety plan at Kuntala waterfall

The State government has launched efforts to make Kuntala waterfall in Adilabad district a safer place for visitors with Tourism Secretary B. Venkatesham and Principal Chief Conservator of Forests (PCCF) P.K. Jha visiting the site on Tuesday.

They were accompanied by a Bengaluru-based structural engineer to assess the feasibility of suspension bridges on the lines of Laknavaram lake in Warangal to allow visitors to watch the wonder from a much safer spot.

The largest waterfall in Telangana is at present unsafe owing to some dangerous spots in the water pools at the foot of the fall. The government is planning to plug the dangerous crevices and fissures in the rock to eliminate the probability of drowning. There were at least 100 deaths due to drowning at the place, attracting negative publicity. However, the visit of the two officials and the expert from Bengaluru seems a reassuring gesture from the government. There was also a plan to impound water at the second fall and use it for boating, the Tourism Secretary said. He talked of a glass bottomed boat being used for the purpose. “We will develop the place in a phased manner and by 2020, the pilot project of the bridge would be completed. Visitors can actually see the waterfall from as close as possible and from a distance to get a complete view from the two structures that will be constructed at the place,” Mr. Venkatesham revealed.

The PCCF said his team is collaborating with the Tourism department to develop the place.

He said more footfalls at the scenic place owing to development in future will also result in better protection to the forest around.