Flaws in NH under construction triggers safety concerns and political row in Kerala

Thiruvananthapuram: Partial collapse and development of cracks along the NH-66 under construction in Kerala have triggered safety concerns as well as a political row in Kerala.

Apart from the collapse and cracks at three spots in north Kerala on Monday and Tuesday, fresh instances of cracks and collapses were reported from at least three more places in the under-construction stretches.

While a portion of the NH collapsed at Kooriyad in Malappuram district on Monday, cracks developed in parts of the NH in nearby Thalappara on Tuesday. Damage to NH was also reported from Kanhangad in Kasargod. On Wednesday, there were reports of fresh damage in Cheruvathoor in Kasargod, Koppam in Kannur and Chavakkad in Thrissur. While cracks were developed on the NH at Chavakkad, at Kasargod, a portion of the service road collapsed. In Kannur, the earth caved in at a spot near Tharliparamba where construction was progressing.

A team of experts started an examination at Kooriyad in Malappuram, where the elevated stretch of NH collapsed on Monday. Local people said that the NHAI had ignored their repeated pleas to construct flyovers along the wetland instead of going for land filling, as the landfilling had blocked the flow of many natural streams. The expert panel is likely to finalise its report by Thursday.

Aggrieved over safety concerns, the local people staged strong protests at most of the spots, demanding that the government ensure proper construction. Experts were also suggesting a safety audit by an independent agency owing to a series of incidents.

The incidents also triggered a political row with the opposition Congress in Kerala, blaming both the CPM government in the state and the BJP government at the centre for the unscientific construction. Congress leaders, including Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee president Sunny Joseph and opposition leader V D Satheesan, flayed that the CPM government, which had been highlighting the NH construction as their achievement, should own up to the responsibility for the serious flaws in the construction. The safety concerns of the people should be addressed, they demanded.

Indian Union Muslim League MP E T Mohammed Basheer called on Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari and sought interventions to address the safety concerns.