Correction to slope at Malpe after landslide to cost Rs 7cr

Panaji: TheNorth Goa collector has invoked special provisions of the Disaster Management Act to procure additional land to correct the slope along the newly constructed Malpe-Pernem highway, which has been shut for traffic since July 7 following a landslide. Work towards this end is estimated to cost Rs 7 crore.
The ministry of road transport and highways had earlier said that the road would be opened on Sep 30, after the slope is corrected.
“The collector will take up acquisition of the additional land under the Disaster Management Act, which allows land to be acquired without following the long drawn out land acquisition processes. The contractor, MVR Infrastructure, which had constructed the new highway, will correct the slope, but benching and construction of a retaining wall will cost an additional Rs 7 crore or so. This will not be covered under the contractor’s earlier maintenance contract as it has stated that land was not available and therefore, benching could not be carried out earlier,” an official said.
MVR Infrastructure had, through a contractor, worked on expanding the highway from Patradevi to Karaswada, at a cost of almost Rs 500 crore.
Officials said water coming from the slope should also have an outlet that does not allow for stagnation or put pressure on the retaining wall, both of which could lead to collapses or landslides.
IIT Bombay, which will check the proposal on slope stability submitted by the contractor, will also have to be paid an additional consultation fee.
MoRTH officials, after inspection, had said that proper benching of the cut slope was not possible during the construction stage due to land constraints, so a retaining wall of 5-6m height was built along a length of 270m on both sides for protection.
IIT Bombay was contacted on July 11 to inspect the location and suggest remedial measures. It was then decided that additional land will have to be acquired for the work.
An additional 25m-wide private land on both sides of the cut section will now be utilised to carry out benching for slope stabilisation.