ThiruvananThapuram: Suddenly closure Ponmudi and Kallar Ecotourism center after the callar Ward is declared a detention zone may have disappointed the news for many people.
However, officials of the Department of Public Works (PWD) believe that the Kuncian cannot come at a better time because they can peacefully carry out maintenance work on Jalan Ponmudi who suffer damage during rainy season rain in June.
The PWD official said they would start working on Monday.
Lockdown came right when PWD gave a work order of RS 24 Lakh to the contractor for road repairs.
It was in July last week that the government gave administrative sanctions for work, after the department drifted the tender to provide a contract.
“We will try to complete the job as soon as possible, trying to solve it before the hill station is reopened to the tourists,” said a senior official attached to the Nedumangad sub-division office.
The road suffered damage after continuous rain, the hill station received in the first week of June.
The road between the 11 and 12 hairpin curves suffered maximum damage in several places due to soil erosion.
This produces depression formed on the road surface.
Rainwater continues to seep through the gap formed by erosion, pose a risk of cave on the road.
In addition, the obstacle of crashes in the 18 hairpin curve has also collapsed during the rain.
The district government acts fast and prohibits the entry of tourists to the hill station to avoid potential tragedy.
However, the district government opened the place a few weeks later after the rainy season arrived.
This was also done after assessing the Covid situation in the district.
The hill station has witnessed a large crowd during the weekend, it became a favorite weekend destination from domestic tourists here.
Last week, the road to the top of the hill witnessed several accidents after more than 5,000 tourists crowded the place.
Solid traffic along with strong rain causes accidents, encouraging police and forest authorities to introduce regulations to keep the crowd under control.
This includes opening a new ticket counter at Anappara forest checkpoint besides the ticket counters at the Golden Valley checkpoint.
They also consider introducing the online ticket booking platform to set the crowd.
However, the day ago the authorities decided to close the tourist spot after Ward Kallar at Vithura Panchayat, which was the point of entry into the destination, was declared a detention zone due to the increasing Covid case.