Traffic was disrupted after a major landslip on the Gap Road stretch of the Kochi-Dhanushkodi National Highway at Munnar on Friday morning. No one was injured in the incident.
Rocks and boulders fell on the Chemmannar road following heavy rain. District Collector Sheeba George banned traffic on the road stretch till further notice.
National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) Assistant Executive Engineer Rex Felix said the landslip debris that fell on the road had been removed. “NHAI officials will conduct a detailed inspection of the road stretch to avert further landslips. The traffic on the route will resume only after the inspection,” he said.
Local people said the region had witnessed nearly 20 major and minor landslips since the beginning of the road-widening works. The works on the 41-km Munnar-Bodimettu stretch began in 2017 at an estimate of ₹268.2 crore.
A report submitted by former Devikulam Subcollector S. Premkrishnan to the District Collector stated that unscientific road widening works had triggered the landslips.
Meanwhile, the action council demanding compensation for farmers hit by landslips on the stretch temporarily suspended its 50-day protest on Friday.
Officials said the farmers suspended the protest after a meeting with Devikulam Subcollector Rahul Krishna Sharma. At the meeting, NHAI officials agreed to settle the issue within ten days.
Two major landslips on the stretch on June 17 and August 6, 2020 had damaged cardamom cultivation in a vast area.
