Agartala, Jun 25, 2024, Manas Pal
Road with about 70 degree up slopes that virtually makes the children and elders to walk up to their village.
( tripurenet.com never publishes photographs of dead body, blood spilling accidents, skeleton etc as it may hurt our readers, especially youngsters and children’s sensibility. But today we are carrying the photographs of the mortal remains of some villagers of Tlaksih village which had to be exhumed as massive landslides due to unscientific and irresponsible constructions of the NHIDCL damaged the burial ground. The photographs are given here to underscore the intensity of emotional trauma that the villagers feel as they have to dig out the skeletal remains of their dear and near ones for reburial. This emotional trauma is, to our understanding, much more painful than the physical destructions of the houses or roads or the village itself. The photographs are being published with due permission from the relatives.)
It is almost a criminal negligence, apathy and arrogance on the part of the National Highways & Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited (NHIDCL) that have put the entire Tlakshi village of Jampui Hills with as many as 65 houses having 272 population into the face of imminent disaster --the village is steadily and gradually caving in -due to mssive landslides.
Inquiries in to the causes and real problems of the Tlkashi village of Jampui Hills revealed that it was NHIDCL which was not only responsible for the damaging the entire topography of the hills in and around the village but also time and again ignored the recommendations, suggestions from the experts and specialists and letters from the state government to mitigate the problem and compensate the villagers.
Already three visits by the expert teams were done in Tlakshi village and the experts after all the visits strongly recommended immediate measures for saving the life, properties of the villagers and the village in general. But all the recommendations -many of them were scientific measures- were simply ignored- it was so despite the fact that the teams not only had the experts from several agencies and government but also from the NHIDCL including its advisor Prof Debasish Roy, professor and geo technical expert from IIT- Kharagpur as well as RK Singh, Deputy General Manager of the NHIDCL and other technical experts.
The first visit was on July 28 , 2023 soon after the cracks developed in the village. The second visit was on August 6 , 2023 and third visit was again on August 19, 2023. Three visits of the experts closely following one after another in one month just showed the urgency and seriousness of the problem. The teams included experts and specialists on the subject like Er. Ratiranjan Debnath, SE, PWD(R&B), Dr. N. Rajdhan Singh, DGM (Geologist), ONGC,, Luangmei Limpou, Sr. Geologist, GSI-Agartala, Koweu-u Kapfo, Sr. Geologist, GSI Agartala, Dr. Sanjay Paul, Asst Prof., Civil Engg. Dept., NIT-Agartala, Abhisek Chaudhuri, Research Officer (Science), TSAC, Soumen Sutradhar, JE, PWD(R&B), Er. Kuntal Ghosh, PhD Scholar, Civil Engg. Dept., NIT Agartala and Dr. Sarat Kumar Das, SPO-DM, Revenue Dept, Govt. of Tripura and Prof Debasish Roy, professor and geo technical expert from IIT- Khargpur as well as RK Singh, Deputy General Manager of the NHIDCL.
They were accompanied by apart from the villagers, officials from District Administration, Sub-Division Administration, Kanchanpur, Block Administration, Vanghmun, Revenue Inspector, Tehsildar, Officials from NHIDCL, local officials from the school, AWC, Village Council .
The objective of the visit was to investigate the Geotechnical aspect of the cause of the landslide and development of cracks on the land surface inside the village, evaluate the extent of damage, and recommend appropriate measures to mitigate the future occurrences.
During the visit the experts were unanimous on one point that it was due to faulty and wholly unscientific NH 44A construction by the NHIDCL that the village is on the verge of disaster.
Moreover, the experts rued that when asked the NHIDCL could not provide the detailed information on geotechnical studies or adequate information relating to the NH 44A construction of the particular location (i.e. Tlakshi Village where alignment of the road was made) conducted prior to the excavation and proper slope stability analysis.
The reports pointed out that the disturbance of the landmass of Tlakshi village started from January 2023 since the NHIDCL started the road construction work and first landslide occurred due to cutting of earth during/ slope modification month of January 2023 itself.
The villagers could feel the shaking of ground due to cutting of earth slope modification along the sides of the existing habitations of the village, movement of heavy plants and machineries used for construction of road. On July 21 , 2023 there was a massive landslide in the village along the side of NH. Followed by the landslide, the cracks started developing on the surface particularly on the main road of the village. Two days later the cracks on the surface were widely visible in other parts of the village such as other parts of village road, on the private lands, home yard and grave yards of the villagers. The tilting of water tanks, tilting of areca nut and other plants, cracks also developed on the buildings, Tlakshi SB School etc.
At the first phase of landslides, as many as eight houses were affected by the landslides and cracks developed in their home yards as well as on structures of their houses. The families of the 8 houses have already vacated their affected houses and are residing with their relatives. (later many other houses were damaged)
Three school buildings of Tlakshi Senior Basic School have been severely affected due to heavy soil erosion on the road side, observing the high risk to the building structure and life safety of the students and teachers, the local authority have shifted the classes of the students to Tlakshi Anganwadi Centre on July 23 , 2023 itself.
Apart from other technical reasons the teams specifically pointed out faulty cutting of slopes by the NHIDCL. The first report pointed out, for the current area at Tlakshi village, the slope ranges from gentle (30 to 16°) ‘where the settlement is situated and moderate (16° to 25°) at the eastern periphery of the village where the road is being constructed …The slope ranging between 20° to 45° is considered crucial in terms of landslide. The natural slope which was previously stable or under low landslide susceptible zone is extensively cut and modified during the road construction.
Then it added: The triggering factor for the land slips in the village was due to anthropogenic factor as cutting of slope for road construction is on immediate downslope of the village.
Apart from that it was also found that the breast walls were also not constructed properly.
In view of the fast emerging seriousness of the issue the visiting teams in their each visit added some more recommendations. In specific, while the experts asked for relief and compensation for the affected from the NHIDCL and relocation of the villagers to safer places, they also ‘strictly’ asked the NHIDCL and other agencies to refrain from doing any further ‘such unscientific activities’ which would add risks to the village. The experts said, as an immediate measure, NHIDCL must cover the exposed areas with appropriate geomembranes and other heightened products. Opening of an alternate approach road to Tlakshi village should be taken up immediately and immediate compensation to the affected families by NHIDCL should be given. Not only that they also asked the NHIDCL to take necessary steps for rehabilitation of the affected families. They asked the NHIDCL to submit an immediate report on the actions to be taken up with specific time while necessary short and medium remedial measures should be implemented immediately.
NHIDCL advisor Prof. Debasis Roy, Geo-Technical Expert from the IIT-¬Kharagpur said, for taking any mitigation and preventive measures, necessary study would be required which might take ‘about a month’ and after that ‘more one and half month’ would be required for solution to address the issue. Prof Roy also said, the deadline for implementation of the preventive and mitigation measure might be the next monsoon season –that is this monsoon.
Besides, the team recommended immediate and appropriate measures for preventing water percolation, finding the extent of crack by geological mapping, proper centralized drainage system along with minor drainage for every household of the village, maintenance of quality of construction materials along with appropriate monitoring and execution.
They also added that the precautionary measures should not be limited to Tlakshi village alone but also extended to the new road constructions by NHIDCL. They also advised that reference might be taken from GSI landslide susceptibility maps for composite vulnerability assessment of the slope. Moreover, all hazard assessment including seismic vulnerability study, building assessment etc. should be taken immediately.
The teams recommended that in absence of proper drainage system measures for removal of the rainwater and household waste water to prevent them getting into the soil in the landslide affected areas.
The teams were apprehensive and they wrote it too : It’s a matter time when the next major landslide will be triggered in this area.
They then added :
Fom this perspective it is best to relocate the inhabitants at a safer place ‘before it is too late’. The Tlakshi Sr. Basic School building should be abandoned as new construction may be more economical compared to stabilization measures as it is in close proximity to the road and a nalah on the northern flank and may pose risk during heavy rainfall.
Similarly, the existing structures on the Tlakshi Village which were in very dangerous position may be dismantled to prevent from any casualty. Further construction of dwelling houses to be avoided in this area.
Besides, the teams pointed out that Tlakshi village and periphery villages should have quick response teams (first aid and search and rescue teams). They said, NHIDCL and other agencies be strictly advised to refrain from doing any further such unscientific activities which would add risks to the village. They strongly recommended that apart from continuously monitoring for development of more cracks and for widening, lengthening, increase in density and depth of the ground cracks, active cutting should be immediately stopped till the area was stabilized and the ground cracks in the Tlakshi village upslope had stopped. Vibrations from large machinery works, as reported by the villagers, also triggered and added to the causal factor of landslides. Therefore, the teams said, “it is suggested that only after proper monitoring and mitigation measures, the next step may be duly taken up for further”.
The gravity of the situation could very well be gauged from the fact in one recommendation the experts asked to set up HAM radio like alternate communication – which only indicated the gravity of the impending disaster.
Those were the recommendations (and some more) that were given by the three visiting experts team last year. Although the NHIDCL authorities – Prof Debasish Roy advisor in particular- assured that the mitigation initiatives would be taken before this monsoon, nothing was done so far. That prompted the state government to write to the Union government and the NHIDCL two letters—last being the one on June 21, 2024.
Take actions at Top most priority : Govt to NHIDCL
Even as the NHIDCL failed to abide by the recommendations and sat on them. The principal secretary Revenue department Puneet Agarwal wrote a letter to Mahmood Ahmed , MD NHIDCL on February 15 last saying that though the monsoon would be setting in Tripura in April and would continue till September no investigation or remedial actions on the part of the NHIDCL had been taken.
This letter did not move the NHIDCL an inch.
So, on last June 21 Additional Secretary Tamal Majumdar wrote another letter to the MD NHIDCL where he said , additional cracks have been developed in the affected Tlakshi Village. The villagers are living in fear of further disasters, prompting them to protest on the street and there are multiple media coverage on the aggrieved situation of Tlakshi Village. With the onset of the current monsoon season, landslides have already been occurred in several areas along NH-44A, turning it into a high-risk zone for landslides. However, the matter is unresolved since more than a year.
Majumdar then asked the MD to consider the matter as ‘Top Most Priority’.
(Also published in the Tripura Times)