Experts to help rebuild collapsed wall

KOTTAYAM: In a major initiative to expedite re-construction of the protection wall, which collapsed on Sunday night at Aravupuzha near Thazhathangadi, R V Sujil Johnson, assistant professor, Government College of Engineering, Thiruvananthapuram visited the site and conducted primary examinations.A team of experts from the college will visit the site on Wednesday. Sujil has fixed four positions to bore the land to conduct soil tests.“We will commence the boring works on Wednesday . The length of each bore will be around 20-25 metres. It will take two weeks to complete the proceedings which include conducting soil testing and submitting recommendations for structural designing of the retaining wall,” said Sujil Johnson adding that the collapsed protection wall will be retained to give the new road double protection.According to primary investigations, a cavity was formed beneath the road that weakened the upper part. The Public Works Department and the Irrigation Department will wait for recommendations of the expert team.“We will wait for the findings of the expert team and our work will start only on the basis of their recommendations,” said John K Sam, Executive Engineer, PWD.He said the land acquisition process for Kottayam-Kumarakom Road would be completed at the earliest. The price of the land, from Baker Junction to Aravupuzha, has been fixed through negotiation.At Aravupuzha, where the protection wall collapsed, the local residents have come forward to surrendering their land.The amount earmarked for land acquisition by the previous government was Rs 5 crore only. However, the PWD officials have asked for an additional amount of Rs 47 crore to meet the additional cost of land acquisition.The work on the road would be completed in a year subject to the availability of funds, said a higher official of the PWD. The revised estimate for the construction of the retaining wall would be finalised soon.District Collector Mini Antony, and higher officials of the Public Works Department and Irrigation Department visited the site. The Collector assured all support and assistance to the expert team which has come for the detailed study.