The District Collectors of Kozhikode and Wayanad will hold a joint meeting here on October 13 to discuss the worsening traffic problems on Thamarassery Ghat Road and to find a viable solution ahead of the northeast monsoon season. The widening of the road in identified stretches and the speedy acquisition of forest land to complete widening works in other stretches are on top of their agenda.
The district administrators decided to hold the meeting as the issue has been affecting road connectivity between Kozhikode and Wayanad districts due to congestion on the 12-km-long Ghat Road. During monsoon season, the problem was at its peak, interrupting traffic on the stretch for hours.
Senior Revenue Department officers said their team and members of the district-level Disaster Management Authority had conducted a field study on the route to finalise immediate priorities, and it would be presented during the Collectors’ meeting. Details with regard to the acquisition of additional land for road development would be submitted for consideration, they said.
Severe damage
In the wake of the Collectors’ meeting, the local bodies along the Ghat Road have come up with a demand to control the entry of overloaded trucks to the road. According to them, frequent trips by overloaded trucks, coming mainly from various granite quarries in Mukkom and surrounding regions, were causing severe damage to the road.
They pointed out that a rapid response team of the Public Works Department (PWD) was yet to be put in place along the stretch. Only the Ghat Road Protection Committee was found actively involved in the event of landslips and traffic blocks. The police aid post at Adivaram too should be strengthened to alleviate traffic congestions, they demanded.
Meanwhile, Revenue Department sources said they had already collected the suggestions of various grama panchayats to be included in the immediate development works on the Ghat Road.
Alternative road
The proposal to construct an alternative road to Wayanad will also be discussed during the Collectors’ meeting. It was in 1990 that the Chippilithodu-Maruthilavu-Thalippuzha road project was proposed as an effective alternative to tide over the hectic traffic on Ghat Road. However, the project was faced with several technical glitches, including clearance issues from the Forest Department.
