The district administration has decided to speed up procedures for getting the required land from the Forest Department to widen some portions of the Thamarassery ghat road and complete the already decided tile interlocking works.
As per the preliminary estimate, nearly one hectare of land, currently under the possession of the Forest department, will be needed to complete the tiling works and the widening process of identified hairpin turns. At present, interlocking work has been completed in three hairpin curves and six more points will have to be covered in the second phase.
According to PWD officials, the road will have to be closed for at least 40 days continuously if the Forest Department delays handing over the land. If the land is given on time, it can be used for diverting the traffic at the hairpin bends without interrupting vehicular traffic, they said.
Meanwhile, people’s representatives from Kozhikode and Wayanad districts have already voiced their disagreement on closing down the road for repair works. They say it will adversely affect goods movement on the National Highway-212 and disrupt inter-State transport.
Along with the completion of the tiling works, the discussion on an alternative road to Wayanad is also under consideration of the district administration. To discuss the survey procedures and other details of land acquisition, a high-level meeting will be convened in Thiruvananthapuram on January 22. People’s representatives and government officers representing various departments have been invited to the meeting.