Nearly a year ago, panic ensued among devotees after boulders came rolling down leading to a major landslide at Indrakeeladri here. The incident happened a short while before Chief Minister Jagan Mohan Reddy’s visit to the popular hill shrine on the occasion of Dasara festivities. It prompted the Sri Durga Malleswara Swamyvarla Devasthanam authorities to take up measures to mitigate the rockfall/landslide.
According to information, the temple administration has taken up the “mitigation measures against rock fall” at Indrakeeladri at an estimated cost of ₹4.25 crore after the government gave administrative and technical sanction. The works were launched a couple of days ago.
Double-twisted iron meshes done through rock bolting would be installed to prevent the fall of boulders.
When contacted, Kanaka Durga temple Executive Officer Bhaskar said that the works were likely to be completed by November. They were taken up as part of the development works. The State government would release necessary funds for the same. The Chief Minister had assured to release the funds for the developmental works during his visit to the temple last year, he recalled.
GSI Survey
In the past, the Geological Survey of India (GSI) conducted a survey on the rock formations of Indrakeeladri, following a request by the Endowments Department with a view to widen the ghat road in 2005. The GSI, in its report, said that the hill had fractured rock-beds. It also suggested that the government take up short treatment such as rock bolting to prevent landslides.
Subsequently, the Kanaka Durga temple authorities took up the stabilisation works and fixed a mesh to capture the boulders rolling down. The administration even took up rock bolting and cement plastering of the hill that is close to the ghat road and parking lot. But, the loose earth fell crashing down onto the ghat road on many occasions.
Earlier instances
There were many instances of boulders rolling down the Indrakeeladri. A landslide in 2006 was so intense that the debris was reportedly carted away in around 30 lorries.
Water supply was badly hit when a boulder rolled down Indrakeeladri damaging the pipeline in 2006-07. A similar incident took place in 2008-09 when a huge boulder, which rolled down from Indrakeeladri during the blasting of rocks for the widening of ghat road, hit the pipeline. The pipeline was laid much before the low-level reservoir near Durga ghat was inaugurated by Mahatma Gandhi in 1929.
