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Kochi: The amicus curiae informed the Kerala High Court in a report that the landslide at the under-construction Anakkampoyil-Kalladi-Meppadi twin tunnel project site in Wayanad on July 7 was not an unforeseeable tragedy but one that had been flagged repeatedly in advance. The report also said the state government and the Public Works Department (PWD) could not evade responsibility for ensuring compliance with environmental clearance conditions.
According to the report, the Kalladi disaster had been foreseen and documented through five written warnings issued before the incident, The New Indian Express reported.
The amicus stated that the District Disaster Management Authority (DDMA) and the Wayanad district administration had sent five successive written communications to the Kerala PWD and the executing agency, directing them to remove the dumped excavated soil and take preventive measures to avert a disaster. It said these directions were not complied with despite repeated warnings.
The DDMA had also instructed the contractor to remove the soil, but the directive was allegedly ignored.
The report was submitted in response to a suo motu case initiated by the High Court following the Mundakkai-Chooralmala landslides of July 30, 2024, to examine measures for preventing natural disasters.
The amicus argued that the state government and the PWD bore primary responsibility for complying with environmental clearance conditions and could not shift accountability to the Konkan Railway Corporation Limited, which was executing the project.
Referring to PWD inspection minutes, the report said officials had found that the large mound of excavated soil posed risks of soil piping and slope instability. It added that the retaining wall and tarpaulin cover provided by the contractor were considered inadequate to prevent water seepage.
The inspection had also recommended reducing the height of the soil dump and relocating families living near the Meenakshi bridge during periods of heavy rainfall. According to the report, the contractor had been instructed to stop work on June 27, in line with an existing direction prohibiting construction activities during the monsoon.
The report recommended that the Kerala State Disaster Management Authority (KSDMA) issue an interim standard operating procedure (SOP) for projects in landslide-prone areas. It said the SOP should cover monsoon stop-work periods, limits on soil dump height and slope, drainage measures, protective covering, monitoring systems and evacuation triggers.
It also recommended installing automated rain gauges and slope-movement sensors with threshold-based public alert systems at the project site and other vulnerable locations before construction resumes.
The amicus further said the deaths warranted a prima facie investigation under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, including Section 106 relating to causing death by negligence and other relevant provisions concerning acts endangering life. The report said the investigation should cover not only the contractor but also all officials and agencies whose actions or omissions may have contributed to retaining the excavated soil despite repeated written warnings.