Kerala government pushing ahead with Hill Highway project,connecting Nilambur in Malappuram with Meppadi in Wayanad. Public Works Minister P.K. Basheer announced it during Assembly session,saying officials will check new road alignment to make it happen .
Despite area marked landslide-prone by State Disaster Management Authority,government committed to finding options . Joint inspection by Kerala Road Fund Board,National Transportation Planning and Research Centre,Forest Department,and Kerala Infrastructure Investment Fund Board showed the old route won't work — no roads there .
Minister admitted Western Ghats' ecological sensitivity where new alignment's planned. Still,efforts on to tweak route with less environmental impact. Locals have pushed for this for years — Thamarassery and Nadukani passes are only real ways from Malappuram to Wayanad. Traffic jams there can be brutal,especially in monsoon.
If project goes forward,travel between Wayanad and central Kerala cut by 70 km. Also shortens Kochi to Bengaluru and Mysuru trips by same amount. Highway could boost tourism,linking Adyanpara waterfalls,Kakkadampoil hills,Edakkal Caves.
But earlier plans scrapped over biodiversity concerns. Government's renewed push reflects tough balance between infrastructure and environment…
