Landslide Risk Slim @Vellarimala: Expert

Study panel head rules out dist admn's debris flow alert, says no material at source

- MANOJ VISWANATHAN @Chooralmala

Laying fears of a possible repeat of the devastating landslide at Vellarimala, which swept away the hamlets of Punchirimattam, Mundakkai and Chooralmala on July 30 last year, earth scientist John Mathai has said that chances of such an eventuality are slim.

A retired scientist with the National Centre for Earth Science Studies, John had led a six-member expert committee formed by the state government to study the causes and impact of the landslide, visiting the source of the landslide and studying the behaviour of debris flow.

Earlier, the district administration had said there is a huge deposit of debris upstream, and hence, a heavy rain could trigger a debris flow capable of washing away the Bailey Bridge.

"There is some debris brought down by the landslide on either side of the river," John told TNIE.

"The river will wash away the soil over a period of time and the boulders will remain. Even if there is heavy flow, it won't extend beyond the danger zone marked by the expert committee. Chooralmala has a 10-feet high sand deposit that has to be removed. The Uralungal society has cleared the debris on the riverbed at Chooralmala and constructed a side wall to smoothen the flow of the river. There is no material at the source of the landslide that can trigger a debris flow."