Himachal HC issues notice to Centre, State on plea for steps to avert landslides

Shimla, Sep 10 (UNI) Himachal Pradesh High Court on Friday issued notice to the Centre and State government on a plea seeking directions to authorities to take remedial measures to prevent landslides.
A Division Bench comprising Acting Chief Justice Ravi Malimath and Justice Jyotsna Rewal Dua passed the orders on a petition filed by Namita Maniktala which was taken up by the Court as Public Interest Litigation (PIL).
The plea contended that many areas of Himachal Pradesh having fragile geologies are prone to landslides and almost every year, the state witnesses massive landslides, which causes loss of lives and property.
The residents of the State as well as the tourists visiting Himachal Pradesh, have the fundamental right to life and the State must take all those precautionary measures, which can prevent the landslides and stop any further loss to life and property of the citizens, it said.
In the plea, Maniktala referred to various reports such as ‘Landslide hazard Risk Management Report, 2015’, a study conducted by Dr.A.K.Mahajan, Professor (Environmental Sciences), report of Geological Survey of India, for the road cave-in at Kali Dhank area in Paonta Sahib-Shillai road and report of Abhay Shukla Committee to study the impact of the establishment of Hydroelectric Projects of mountain ecosystems.
But the State and NHAI authorities are not taking into account these expert suggestions while undertaking massive developmental projects in HP, especially Highways involving large scale excavation of hills, the petitioner alleged.
The plea also sought reports of the implementation of these reports from the state and to engage the services of the Wadia Institute of Himalayan Geology, Dehradun–a leading expert Institution in the field–to conduct a study on all such landslide vulnerable zones and suggest the measures to be taken for preventing such landslides.
She has prayed that the state may be directed to install Landslides Predicting Device as have been developed by IIT, Mandi, and other similar devices in all the landslide-prone areas.
The petition sought the National Highway Authority of India and HP Public Works Department, may be directed to implement all the measures so suggested by the experts for the prevention of landslides along all National and State Highways.
The Court posted the matter after four weeks and directed the respondents to file a reply by the next date.