CM Vijayan inaugurates Wayanad tunnel road work amid ecological concerns

Thiruvananthapuram: The much awaited and much hyped Wayanad tunnel project's work was formally inaugurated by Kerala Chief Minster Pinarayi Vijayan on Sunday amidst serious ecological concerns over the project on one side and the pressing need to address the transport woes of the high-range district on the other.

The 8.11 kilometer twin tunnel road, which will be third longest in the country, is conceived as an alternative to the Thamarasserry ghat road, a key stretch of NH 766 connecting Karnataka and Kerala. Once the tunnel between Meppadi in Wayanad to Anakkampoyil in Kozhikode becomes a reality, around 30 kilometre distance and at least 90 minutes time could be saved.

Kerala Chief Minister said in his inaugural address that the work was commencing after overcoming many hurdles.

Meanwhile, environmentalists already moved the Kerala High Court against the project raising the environmental hazards and the technical flaws in the clearances given for the project. The HC also said in an interim order that all further steps taken with regard to the project will be subject to the outcome of the writ petition.

The necessity of an alternative route for the Thamarasserry ghat road was very well evident following the recent landslips along the ghat road causing disruptions to hundreds of vehicles. Moreover, since Wayanad is yet to have adequate health infrastructure, the people of Wayanad often depend on hospitals in Kozhikode. Hence any projects that improve connectivity for the high range district has become a necessity.

However, the serious ecological concerns posed by the tunnel project has been highlighted even by the state and centre expert panels that gave environmental clearance to the project. The Meppadi region in Wayanad from where the tunnel road begins witnessed several landslides over these years, including last year's Choooralmala - Mundakkai landslide that claimed around 300 lives.

The Wayanad Prakrthi Samrakshana Samathi (nature protection forum) that has moved court cites lack of stage-II forest clearance for the project as well as suppression of crucial fact that the project areas include regions that are marked as protected areas or ecologically sensitive zones.

The state government plans to complete the Rs. 2134 crore project in four years. The Konkan Railway Corporation is the implementing agency and tenders for the work were already finalized.