Boulders rolled down from the Indrakeeladri near the Head Water Works at Kummaripalem here on Friday, causing panic among the road users. However, none were injured.
The traffic was disrupted on this busy stretch that feeds the highway traffic into the city. The vehicles that were coming towards the city from suburbs and Hyderabad were diverted from Kumarripallem junction via Tunnel Road, said ACP (Traffic) ACP Shravan Kumar.
There were many instances of boulders rolling down from Indrakeeladri. Landslide occurred in 2006 was so intense that the debris was reportedly carted away in around 30 lorries.
The water supply was badly hit when a boulder rolled down Indrakeeladri damaging the pipeline in 2006-2007. A similar incident took place in 2008-09 when a huge boulder, which rolled down from Indrakeeladri during the blasting of rocks for the widening of ghat road, hit the pipeline. The pipeline was laid much before the low-level reservoir near Durga ghat was inaugurated by Mahatma Gandhi in 1929.
Three landslides were reported during Dasara festivities in October 2010. The devotees on their way to the Kanaka Durga temple had a narrow escape after a rock slide resulted in a rain of debris on the ghat road. Landslides were also reported at Upparavagu (the other side Indrakeeladri) in One Town in October 2013.
The Geological Survey of India (GSI) conducted a survey on the rock formations of Indrakeeladri, following a request by the Endowments Department with a view to widen the ghat road in 2005. The GSI, in its report, said that the hill had fractured rock-beds. It also suggested the government to take up short treatment such as rock bolting to prevent landslides.
The Kanaka Durga temple took up the stabilisation works and fixed a mesh to capture the boulders rolling down. The temple even took up rock bolting and cement plastering of the hill that is close to the ghat road and parking lot. But, the loose earth fell crashing down on to the ghat road. The authorities had made five estimates in the past to take similar safety measures on the remaining portion of the hill.
