Staff Reporter
KALPETTA
The environmental organisations in the district have urged the government to demolish the illegal constructions of huge multi-storey buildings on the banks of the Banasura Sagar reservoir at Manhura in Thariyodu grama panchayat in the district.
Speaking to mediapersons here on Friday, N. Badusha, president, Wayanad Prakruthhi Samrakshana Samithi, alleged that illegal construction of three huge buildings was under way on a slanted portion of land in front of the reservoir. Many complaints were raised by the public and the former secretary of the Thariyode grama panchayat regarding breach of norms from the beginning of the constructions.
But the District Disaster Management Authority (DDMA) was yet to adopt any steps even after an expert committee had found many violations in its two visits to the site.
According to the directive of the former District Collector issued in her capacity as the DDMA chairman, the height of constructions in the grama panchayat should be be a maximum of 10 metres (three-floor levels). But, an expert committee constituted by the DDMA as per the direction of the Kerala High Court recently found that the height of the main block of the complex was above 15 metres (five floors) and another building was above 10.3 metres (four floors).
The court had issued the directive after the intervention of the Western Ghats Protection Committee, an environmental organisation in the district.
The committee also found that the second building was constructed without the permission of the panchayat, the soil was removed from the area without the permission of the Mining and Geology Department. The constructions were yet to get the layout permission of the district town planner, Mr. Badusha said.
Though the committee had submitted its second report to the DDMA two months ago, it was yet to adopt any steps against the illegal constructions, he alleged. Now, the DDMA had decided to revisit the site on Monday for further inspections.
It was suspected that the revisit was to provide legal sanction to the illegal constructions. The district administration and the DDMA should issue directives to demolish the illegal constructions and withdraw their plan to revisit the site and, he said.
The organisation also demanded an investigation by the Crime Branch into the realities of the constructions.
