Road safety expert and former Regional Transport Officer P.D. Sunilbabu, who has been the nodal officer of the Safe Zone Sabarimala project ever since its inception in 2012, has proposed metro or monorail connectivity between the pilgrim base camp of Nilackal and Pampa.

Mr. Sunilbabu says he has submitted a project report to the government. Talking to The Hindu, Mr Sunilbabu said the proposed metro or monorail would be of great help in minimising the environment pollution owing to carbon emission from diesel and petrol engines of vehicles in the evergreen reserve forests. Moreover, it would reduce the distance between Nilackal and Pampa by 10 km. The best part of the proposed project was that it would be of great help in ensuring effective crowd management and regulation of pilgrim flow to Sabarimala during rush days, thereby avoiding overcrowding and congestion at the hillock, he said.

‘No tree felling’

According to Mr. Sunilbabu, the road distance between Nilackal and Pampa is 21 km and the proposed Nilackal-Pampa metro rail will only be 11 km.

Construction of a metro or monorail would necessitate no felling of trees as the railway line would be laid on an elevated path supported by tall pillars, he said. Mr. Sunilbabu said constructing a metro or monorail between Nilackal and Pampa, cutting across the Attathodu valley, would help authorities stop all transport carriages at the Nilackal base camp and properly regulate the pilgrim flow to Pampa and Sabarimala from there.

The proposed project is 100% eco-friendly and cost-effective, considering the huge environmental cost of existing road transport system, he says.