Illegal trekking to the Ambukuthi hilltop is posing a serious threat to the Edakkal caves and the neolithic age petroglyphs (rock engravings) on the walls of the cave.
Trekking on the hills was banned by the State government since October 1, 2009, after it was found that trekking to the hilltop would affect the rock engravings.
But recently, a group of resort owners in Malavayal and Govindamoola areas, near the hill, resumed the trekking for adventure tourists by flouting all norms set by the State government, Thomas Ambalavayal, convenor, Wayanad heritage conservation committee, told The Hindu .
The resort lobby had constructed pathways for the purpose by clearing undergrowths after encroaching on a piece of revenue land on the northern part of the hill, Mr. Thomas added.
Heritage monument
A national workshop held at Sulthan Bathery on ‘Conservation of Edakkal Petroglyphs’ in 2013, as part of securing the UNESCO World Heritage status for the monument, had discussed potential threats to the rock carvings and scientific measures to conserve the monument.
It had identified seepage of rainwater from the Ambukuthi hills as a threat to the wall engravings and had recommended the formation of a core committee to suggest measures to divert the movement of water through the rock surface.
It said necessary measures should be taken to prevent wedging due to the growth of vegetation along the cracks, which is another threat to the engravings.
Since huge blocks of rocks near the cave faced the threat of collapse due to the impact of blasts at the nearby granite quarries, experts had recommended that it be bolted properly instead of removing it.
Yet to act
However, even after four years of recommendations, the authorities were yet to take any action to address these issues, he said. Unrestricted entry of visitors without assessing the carrying capacity of the fragile rock site had raised concern, he said.
The heritage monument is under the possession of the State Archaeology Department and the tourism activities are managed by the Edakkal Tourism Destination Management Council under the District Tourism Promotion Council.
