A Division Bench of the Kerala High Court has directed the District Disaster Management Authority, Wayanad, to file a statement explaining the steps taken in response to the finding of an expert panel that constructions were being undertaken in landslide-prone areas in Vythiri taluk in violation of a ban on buildings above 10 metres.
The Bench led by Chief Justice S. Manikumar passed the order recently on a writ petition filed by Western Ghats Protection Council, Wayanad. According to them, illegal constructions were going on in connection with a hospital project and it was a threat to the existence of Western Ghats and its neighbouring meadows. The constructions were being undertaken in the vicinity of the highly sensitive area at Vythiri taluk in Wayanad district and around Banasura Sagar project in total violation of environment laws and statutory as well as executive orders. In fact, the chairman of the Wayanad District Disaster Management Authority had banned all the constructions above 10 metres or three floors on mountain slopes in Ambukuthi mala, Vaduvanchal, Puthumala, Vythiri and Lakkidi as they were prone to large-scale landslips, the petitioner said.
The expert panel headed by the Town Planner, Wayanad, had found that the constructions were being made in gross violation of the orders issued by the District Disaster Management Authority. The building complex was found to be more than three storeys, that too exceeding the limit of 10 metres.
The petitioner sought a directive to take immediate steps to demolish the existing structures constructed for the project.
Published - December 27, 2021 06:31 pm IST
