Thiruvananthapuram: In the wake of casualties to life and properties in several landslide-prone areas, especially in regions like Idukki, the government is mulling restrictions on building houses in such volatile areas.
Chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan said here on Tuesday the government has begun seriously considering whether people should be rehabilitated in areas prone to landslides, landslips, and floods. In the review meeting held in Idukki on Monday, chaired by revenue minister E Chandrasekharan, the matter was discussed and it was decided that all those who lost their houses and properties in landslides, should be hereafter rehabilitated to safer locations, and the government will find new land for their rehabilitation.
As per the estimation of the Public Works Department, 20,7900 cubic metres of soil has to be cleared for clearing sites that were damaged due to landslides. “Houses in Idukki and Wayanad suffered the worst damages due to landslides. It will take up to two months to clear the areas affected by landslides,” principal secretary (PWD) G Kamala Vardhana Rao said.
Though no formal assessments have been made, it has been approximately estimated that more than 7,000 houses were completely destroyed in the state and among them, 1,500 houses were destroyed in Idukki alone. Also, there were 300 landslides of various magnitudes in Idukki district that caused heavy losses of life and property. “We are in the process of making a detailed assessment of the losses due to landslides in Idukki. It will be submitted to the government soon,” Idukki district collector K Jeevan Babu said.
Several landslips rocked the state, which damaged access roads that made relief operations even more difficult. It is under these circumstances that the government is seriously deliberating on whether the rehabilitation has to be made in safer places with improved road access.
