The situation at Pampa is horrifying and the Travancore Devaswom Board alone will not be able to restore the Pampa Manalpuram in a time-bound manner, Leader of the Opposition Ramesh Chenninthala has said.
He was talking to reporters after visiting Pampa in the foothills of Sabarimala on Thursday. He said coordinated efforts by all government departments were required for the smooth conduct of the annual pilgrim season.
The government should support the TDB’s attempts to ensure basic pilgrim facilities at Pampa, Nilackal, and Sabarimala, he said.
Mr. Chennithala said a Bailey bridge across the Pampa river was necessary to facilitate smooth passage of pilgrims to the Pampa Manalpuram and the Ganapati Temple premises during the pilgrim season.
Memo to Nirmala
Mr. Chennithala said he would talk to Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and submit a memorandum to her, seeking her immediate intervention for constructing a Bailey bridge at Pampa well before the beginning of the annual pilgrim season in mid-November.
He alleged that the catastrophe at Pampa was due to the failure of the government in dam management. The sand and silt thathad accumulated in the Kakki dam of the Kerala State Electricity Board had gushed into the Pampa, destroying the Manalpuram, he said.
The opening of the shutters of the Anathode and Kochu Pampa dams without ensuring proper public safety measures and without warning people residing downstream made the flood disastrous, he alleged.
