Kala Amb industrial units face threat from Markanda river

Nahan, August 26

Threat from the Markanda river looms large over several factories in the Kala Amb Industrial Area near the Haryana-Himachal Pradesh in Sirmaur district. The situation is particularly alarming at Ogli village, where a retaining wall has been severely damaged by strong water currents of the river. A substantial portion of the road has been eroded.

The road is a vital artery for over 10 industrial units and is used for the transportation of raw materials and finished goods. The continuous erosion has created a precarious situation as 300 meters of the road could collapse any moment. As of now, the situation has led to a complete halt on plying of heavy transport vehicles, causing significant operational disruption for the industrial units.

Entrepreneurs are being forced to incur additional costs by hiring smaller vehicles to transport goods. If the retaining wall is not repaired immediately, the road could become completely impassable, putting the industrial units and local population at risk.

The collapse of this protection wall near Vashisht Chemicals has resulted in the cessation of heavy vehicle movement to the industrial units situated adjacent to the road. The industrialists are working together to repair a section of the damaged retaining wall in a bid to keep transportation routes open, albeit partially.

Pertinent to mention here that the road also leads to a waste treatment plant, constructed by the government by spending crores. In case the road is damaged further, the transportation of garbage to the plant would be severely disrupted.

Meanwhile, locals and industrialists have appealed to the state government and administration to repair the broken wall on priority with disaster management fund. They emphasised the need for roping in skilled engineers to ensure that life and property are protected from recurring floods in the Markanda River.

Sirmaur Additional Deputy Commissioner L.R. Verma said relevant departments had been instructed to take an immediate action. He mentioned that provisions would be also made under the disaster management fund to construct a retaining wall along the road.