IIT Roorkee, IIT Mandi, and NHAI to submit a report on Himachal’s landslide-affected ecological fragile areas: Gadkari

A joint Technical team comprising scientists from IIT Mandi & IIT Roorkee and engineers of the National Highway Authority would visit Himachal Pradesh soon and submit its report on landslide-affected ecological fragile areas along four lanes and National Highways.

This was stated by Union Minister Nitin Gadkari at Kullu on Tuesday while addressing a press conference after visiting landslides, flashfloods, and flood-hit Kullu district in Himachal Pradesh.

He said that geological strata along the River Banks including Beas and Satluj are not stable and hills cave in and rivers run parallel to beside affected four-lane and National Highways in the state.

Union minister said that he never imagine the scale of loss caused by the recent rain in Himachal Pradesh. 

He said that NHAI would try to channel the entire starch of river basins by digging river bottoms and building concrete walls on both sides of rivers. He said that river flood waters washed away the foot walls of roads and sleet and rock and other river debris causing rising the water level on its banks and flood waters sometimes cross over the roads and entering in the villages situated along the river banks.

He said that IIT Mandi and IIT Roorkee and some competent NHAI engineers would visit Himachal Pradesh to suggest to the government how to minimize the loss caused to infrastructure and suggest a durable solution to build long-lasting highways along the geological fragile regions of Himachal Pradesh.

He said that a team would visit Himachal on August 3 to find out the reason for the heavy damage caused to the road and give input on how to resolve the road construction problem so that it did not damage the way recent rainfall has damaged the state.

He said that a study would be conducted to ensure the free flow of river water and the bottom of the river would be made smooth so that water could flow in a uniform manner. 

He said that the union’s government would also conduct a study on how could flood protection could be ensured in the state and rocks, stones, concrete, and sleet laying on the River banks should be removed from the drive so that it didn’t cause damage to the road, river banks and infrastructure. 

He said that a team from Switzerland would visit India and suggestions would be taken to resolve the issue of frequent landslides along NH and four lanes for the state of Himachal Pradesh to minimize future loss. He said that experts from Himachal Pradesh would be consulted for designing future roads.

He said that the government had recently built the Kiratpur-Manali Four lane after spending around Rs 9000 Crore which was affected by a flash flood and landslide in recent fury.

He said that it would need Rs 3000 to 4000 Crore to rebuild the four lanes. Union minister said that contractors have been mobilized and the state government would be provided assistance to restore the state’s major road again.

He said that the union government would award the contract of Rs 250cr Bijli Mahadev ropeway by August 15 and Rs 400 Cr would be released to the state for building damaged bridges and central relief fund.

He said that the government has released Rs 250 Crore to maintain all affected NH immediately and Rs 130 Cr was also released to the state for Climatic Relief Fund.  He said that Rs 80 Crore would be released immediately. In addition to this union government also help the state government along four lanes and NH to build a state Highway up to one km abutting NH along with a bridge to facilitate farmers to Transport apples into the market.

Mr. Gadkari said that NH also helps to build bridges washed away and new steel bridges would be built to open the road for apple season.

He said that another central team has visited the state recently and Modi Government would provide additional relief to rain-affected roads beside roads and bridges.

Earlier to this Unions Surface Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari, Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu Former Chief Minister Jairam Thakur, and Public Works Department Minister Vikramaditya visited the affected area and interacted with People.