Thiruvananthapuram: Kerala Public Works Minister P.K. Basheer has held Konkan Railway solely responsible for the landslide at the tunnel construction site in Kalladi, stating that repeated warnings to remove the accumulated soil at the project area were ignored.
The minister said the Public Works Department (PWD) had directed the contractors twice to clear the dumped soil. However, the contractors allegedly proceeded with the work while sidelining the PWD. He added that the minutes of the review meeting concerning the removal of the soil have been made public by the department.
Basheer said work at the site had already been suspended and workers evacuated, leaving only engineers and officials in the area when the landslide occurred. He maintained that there was no basis for blaming the PWD, as the department was not directly involved in the execution of the project. He also pointed out that all environmental clearances for the project had been granted by the Union Ministry of Environment.
PWD Special Secretary Atheela Abdullah said the decision to halt work before the incident proved to be a crucial one. She noted that the department had issued advance warnings and that the issue was raised as the fourth recommendation during a review meeting held on June 25.
Officials warned that the large quantity of excavated soil dumped at the project site could trigger soil piping and slope instability during the monsoon, and had recommended immediate precautionary measures to prevent a possible disaster.
