Residents reluctant to leave landslide-prone Vilangad, say officials

Most families living in the landslide-prone areas of Vilangad village are yet to comply with the evacuation order recently issued by District Collector M.S. Madhavikutty. The order was issued on June 5 as a precautionary measure to reduce the impact of natural calamities in the highly vulnerable upland region.

Revenue department officials who met around 37 families in the village following the Collector’s directive said that fewer than five families had temporarily shifted to the houses of close relatives in cooperation with the precautionary measures initiated by the District Disaster Management Authority (DDMA). No relief camp has been opened in the area due to the alleged reluctance of residents to leave their homes, the officials said.

“Many of them want relief camps closer to their present location, which cannot be permitted under the latest safety instructions. We have identified two suitable locations nearly one kilometre away from the danger zone, but many residents are not willing to move there now,” said a senior Revenue department official from the village. According to him, many residents are of the view that they will leave only if the situation worsens.

Meanwhile, officials appointed by the Collector held discussions with local panchayat authorities and village staff to ensure basic facilities at the proposed relief camps. They said all essential services, including food, medicines and counselling support, would be provided to camp inmates. According to the Revenue department records, nearly 150 people, including men, women and children, are living in the landslide-prone areas of Vilangad village under Vadakara taluk. Many of them, who had suffered major losses in previous landslides, are currently residing in newly built houses constructed under various sponsorship schemes.

Officials from the Vadakara taluk office said they remain prepared to handle any emergency situation following the appointment of the Vadakara tahsildar as the Assistant Nodal Officer for implementing the evacuation order issued by the District Collector. They added that residents had already expressed willingness to relocate in the event of extreme rainfall or any other dangerous weather conditions.