Over 100 houses on the Vadakara coastline hit by sea erosion
The reconstruction of damaged sea walls along the vulnerable coastal areas of Kozhikode district ahead of the monsoon is in full swing.
The fortification of the existing walls on some dangerous coastal stretches is also likely to be completed soon.
The Azhithala-Kuriyadi stretch of the Vadakara coastline was the worst-hit in the recent sea erosion. Revenue officials said reconstruction work as proposed by local administrators was under way in several locations near Vadakara. More than 100 houses on the coastline had been hit by sea erosion, which damaged the 4-km-long sea wall in many locations. It also forced the Disaster Management Authority to shift over 300 persons to safer locations.
Fishermen organisation leaders from Vadakara taluk said huge quantity of granite blocks had already been unloaded in most of the affected areas to complete the emergency reconstruction work within a week. Beaches near Mukhacheri and Kallintavida near Madappally were the worst affected areas, they said.
The damaged sea walls along the most vulnerable beach stretches near Koyilandy were repaired to meet the monsoon challenge. However, a few fishermen organisation leaders from the area said they were unhappy with the “temporary repairing solution” and claimed that it would not survive the monsoon season.
“Temporary filling using granite blocks will never be a proper solution, as it has proved to be a futile exercise and waste of money. Scientific use of high-quality tetrapod alone will work to fight the situation,” said N.P. Radhakrishnan, State vice president of the Bharatiya Matsya Pravarthaka Sanghom. He also pointed out that the views of expert engineers and fishers should be sought to prepare a better seawall fortification plan for the State.
Road renovation
Along with the sea wall fortification work, the Tourism Department is making all efforts to complete the renovation of damaged coastal roads leading to major beach tourism destinations. Minister for Public Works and Tourism P.A. Mohamed Riyas on Sunday visited the Kappad beach to take stock of the situation. He said the renovation of the damaged road between Poyilkavu and Kappad stretch would be completed at the earliest.
Mr. Riyas also made it clear that no emergency road renovation work would be delayed in the name of fund shortage. “Contractors who fail to complete projects in time will be excluded from awarding new projects,” he added.
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