Structures along highways at risk

Kuldeep Chauhan

Tribune News Service

Shimla, July 16

Hundreds of eateries, hotels, homestays, private houses and commercial buildings along national highways have been erected on loose soil.

Since a majority of these restaurants, dhabas and eateries are located along the highways, they do not come under the purview of the Town and Country Planning (TCP) Act.

These roadside commercial ventures pose a risk to visitors as is evident from the Kumarhatti mishap, where a building housing an eatery collapsed, killing 14 persons.

Geological engineers have warned that if corrective measures were not taken, more such mishaps could take place as many buildings were structurally flawed. In most cases, the structures have been erected mindlessly.

Most of these roadside joints, eateries, commercial ventures and hotels have come up as part of ribbon development along the Kalka-Shimla-Kufri-Theog-Narkanda-Rampur- Kinnaur highway. The situation is no different along the Shimla-Darlaghat-Ghagus-Mataur and Kiratpur-Mandi-Kullu-Manali and Jogindernagar-Mandi highways.

“Though there is no geological study done on the stability of soil on which these structures have been raised, in a cursory survey it was observed that many of these commercial buildings have been constructed on debris dumped along slopes when the highways were being constructed,” said Dr Rajeshwar Banshtu, an associate professor and a senior geological engineer at the department of civil engineering at the National Institute of Technology (NIT), Hamirpur.

“All buildings that have come up along the highways need sub-surface investigation as loads of debris and loose strata can be seen dumped along the highway from Kalka to Solan till Kinnaur and from Nahan to Kumarhatti,” he added.

Dr Banshtu said there were geological engineering techniques that could carry out the sub-surface investigation to ascertain the safety of all structures on the ground. “Multi-storey structures that have come on strong and stable strata pose no risk even in the event of an earthquake. Geological studies have revealed that only Dharamsala falls in the seismic zone V, while the rest of Himachal is under seismic zone IV,” he said.

NHAI technical manager YA Raut said the NHAI had removed over 378 encroachments along the Shimla-Kalka highway on the direction of the High Court in the recent past.

No permanent structure can come up within the 6-m radius of the boundary of the highway as per norms and it is the responsibility of the TCP Department and PWD to oversee the safety of the buildings along the roads.

The civic authorities of Solan, Theog and Narkanda blamed the NHAI and the PWD for dumping construction material along slopes.

Situation alarming 

• Most roadside joints, eateries, commercial ventures and hotels have come up as part of ribbon development along the Kalka-Shimla-Kufri-Theog-Narkanda-Rampur- Kinnaur highway. 
• The situation is no different along the Shimla-Darlaghat-Ghagus-Mataur and Kiratpur-Mandi-Kullu-Manali and Jogindernagar-Mandi highways.