Whereas most of my focus has been in and around Kalimpong town, there has been devastation in rural areas also.
In Barabhalukhop, a huge landslide emanating from Dello area, has just narrowly missed some village houses...the houses and land around them are cracked but LUCKILY the landslide just grazed the settlements.
The same is true in the Bhagay Sangsay area and Kharga Sangsay areas where really massive landslides have allowed villages to see the light of another day for this time.
What scares me is the size of these slides, some of them have started from the top of Kalimpong ridge line and have reached the Teesta valley almost 3000' below.
What triggered off these mammoth landslides in Sep2007?
Can we all do our bit and ask the Govt, NGOs and whoever to call in experts who can help find a solution?
You see, we may not be as lucky the next time
praful rao
Without wasting time, we need to :-
ReplyDelete1. Invite experts through our network to study the ground reality right from the hill-tops to the lower reaches;
2. Seek their technical actionable recommendations; and then
3. Act.
For starters :-
1. Let us look around in the data-base of such technical volunteers; and
2. Take on from there for seeking obtainable "Grants" to fund their travel and daily allowance.
3. Based on their advice, submit detailed project to "funding agencies".
These, I believe, are doable.
Let's 'just do it'.
Yours for the cause,
Rtn. Bharat Mani Pradhan
Features that might be noticed prior to major
ReplyDeletelandsliding:
4 Springs, seeps, or saturated ground in areas
that have not typically been wet
4 New cracks or unusual bulges in the ground,
street pavements, or sidewalks
4 Soil moving away from foundations
4Ancillary structures such as decks and patios
tilting and (or) moving relative to the main
house
4Tilting or cracking of concrete floors and
foundations
4 Broken water lines and other underground
utilities
4 Leaning telephone poles, trees, retaining
walls, or fences
4 Offset fence lines
4 Sunken or down-dropped road beds
4 Rapid increase in creek water levels, possibly
accompanied by increased turbidity (soil content)
4 Sudden decrease in creek water levels though
rain is still falling or just recently stopped
4 Sticking doors and windows, and visible
open spaces indicating jambs and frames out of
plumb