As many as 305 families living closer to the river have been moved to relief and rehabilitation camps in Valparai.
A meeting was held on Wednesday to discuss relief and rehabilitation measures in the event of natural disasters triggered by the intensifying South-West monsoons, with participation from District Monitoring Officer Ms. Jayashree Muralidharan, District Collector Kranti Kumar Pati, Pollachi Sub-Collector Cathrene Saranya, and others.
Valparai officials informed the District Monitoring Officer that 15 families from Kamaraj Nagar have been relocated to Valparai St. Heart Higher Secondary School, while 170 families from Kakkan Colony, Ceylon Colony, and Vazhaithottam have been transferred to Government High School. About 25 families residing in the lower reaches of the playground have been moved to the Panchayat Union Elementary School, and 50 families from Periyar Nagar have been relocated to Panchayat Union Middle School and Urulikal Panchayat Elementary School. 20 families from the Rottikadai Quarry have been shifted to the Lower Paralai Panchayat Union Elementary School, while 25 families residing in Dhobi Colony have been moved to the Municipal Community Hall.
Ms. Jayashree later inspected works at the 23 hairpin bend, where landslips had occurred. At the spot, 2000 sandbags were used for arresting the landslips. The officer also visited the bereaved family members of Smt. Rajeshwari and Selvi Dhanapriya, who were killed in landslips on July 30.
Collector Kranti Kumar Pati, during an interaction with the press, said that the district administration has decided to do a mapping of Valparai hills by the Geological Survey of India. A study of the Pollachi – Valparai road had already been done, and now the District Administration has written to the GSI asking them to come down to Valparai, initiate the study and provide suggestions and feedback.
