The State Public Works department’s (PWD) National Highway (NH) wing on Tuesday completing the debris clearing work on the site at Munnar where two major landslips occurred recently.
| Photo Credit: SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
The Kerala Public Works department’s (PWD) National Highway (NH) wing on Tuesday completed the debris clearing work on the landslip site at Munnar. Two major landslips had occurred on the Kochi-Dhanushkodi National Highway, near the old Government Arts College at Munnar, early on Saturday night and Sunday (July 26 and 27).
The road will be opened for traffic only after a report from the District Geologist. “The District Geologist examined the landslip site, and the NH wing has requested a report from the geologist.” The NH wing would allow traffic on the road based on the report and it was expected that the traffic could be resumed on Wednesday, said an NH wing official.
“If there is heavy rain in the area, there is the possibility of future landslips,” said the official.
Soil conditions to be studied
“To permanently avoid landslip issues, the NH wing will deploy a geotechnical team to study the soil conditions of the road in the area. The team will also visit the Gap Road stretch of the highway from where repeated landslips have been reported,” said the official.
According to the official, the debris was cleared with huge effort.
Two major landslips hit the area on Saturday night and Sunday morning following heavy rain. A moving lorry was trapped under the debris following the landslip that occurred around 10 p.m. on Saturday, and the vehicle driver was killed. Following the landslips, the Idukki district administration suspended traffic on the Munnar-Devikulam route.
Published – July 29, 2025 08:11 pm IST
