Site Alternatives
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Site Alternatives Waterway from Mahe – Valapattanam Section Study Area The portion from Mahe to Valapattanam is discontinuous in three portions. Three artificial cuts are required to be constructed for obtaining a continuous waterway in this section. The discontinuous portion between Mahe and Erangoli river is considered as first cut, Eranjoli river and Dharmadom river/Anjarakandy river is considered as second cut and the portion between Anjarakandy river and Valapattanam river is considered as third cut. The approximate discontinuous length for each of these cuts is 9.25, 0.85 and 15 km respectively. A team from NATPAC along with officials from Kerala Waterways Infrastructure Limited (KWIL) and Inland Navigation Department (IND) made site visits in all of these portions to identify the suitable alternatives for all these cuts. A minimum of three alternatives are considered in this study. The team conducted detailed site visits with the help of maps and local dwellers. The factors considered for the selection of alignment is as follows. Utilizing available rivers/ Thodu/ canal thereby reducing the land acquisition. Minimum resettlement Considering low lying areas for maximum water depth in the canal Smooth alignment with less curves Minimum high elevation/tunneled portions in the alignment Lesser proximity to the High Tension Lines. Availability of water Avoiding cultivated area Minimum impact to environment The team with experienced professionals considered the alignment based on the above factors with suitable weightage in accordance to the site conditions. [Type text] Page 1 Site Alternatives Features of the waterway The waterway was proposed with an ROW of 60 meters including the service roads in both sides. Wherever a high cut portion is present, the ROW is increased to 80 meters. It is proposed to develop this waterway as a Class 1 waterway and the length of the largest vessel is limited to 28.5 meters. According to the standards, the minimum radius of the waterway is 4 times the length of the largest vessel. The minimum radius was fixed to 130 meters. First Cut The discontinuous portion from Mahe and Eranjoli river is considered as first cut. Three alignments were considered for the first cut, in which the first two alignment share majority of its path. The alignment was first drawn using Google earth connecting the comparatively low elevation areas and avoiding highly populated areas. After drafting the alignment, the team visited the field the field for confirming the details obtained from the maps and checking the feasibility of the particular alignment. Necessary changes were done on all the alignments. [Type text] Page 2 Site Alternatives Mahe River Eranjoli River Alternative 1: This alternative was considered utilizing relatively low elevation areas. The length of this alternative is 9.3 km and it mostly pass through plain terrain. The alignment is considered along the residential, marshy and agricultural areas. The alignment passes along Olavilam, Marwa, Sameeghar,Vayalilpeedika,Mannekara,Makkuni regions. The elevation of along the alignment varies from 5- 35 metres, where majority of the alignment falls in between 10-20 m elevation. [Type text] Page 3 Site Alternatives The alignment starts from the Mayyazhi puzha near Peringadi utilizing the low lying areas and crosses the Thalassery – Nadapuram road in between Menapram and Pettipalam. (3-14 m) The alignment then continue along Marwa and Chowkli, crossing the Chokli-Pookom road near the Periyandy LP school (16-33m) and then it traverses to the Nidubram- Vayalil peedika road and crosses the road near to Nidubram Madappura sreemuthappan temple. (24-29m). The alignment then traverses parallel to the Nidubram- Vayalil peedika road in north direction and crosses Pookome- Madapeedika road near to Vayalil peedika.(17-27m). After crossing this road, the alignment utilizes the low lying areas and crosses the Pandakkal- Mannekara –Panoor road near to Jawahar Navodaya Vidhyalaya (11-17 m). Then the alignment utilizes the low lying areas and crosses the Thalassery-Panoor road to reach Kuyyali Puzha (9-12m). This alignment has a length of 9.3 km. Even if the alignment utilizes the low lying areas, in certain places, it passes through densely populated area. Many residential as well as industrial units fall along the alignment. Alternative 2: This alignment mostly coincides with the Alternative 1.The difference being in the portion from Pettipalam to Vayalilpeedika. The alignment is considered by minimizing the effects it cause to the Residential settlements. The alignment is about 10.2 km in length with terrain as plain. The elevation of this particular alignment varies from 4 to 36 m. A high cut area/ tunnel is required in this section. In this alternative the alignment starts as in the Alternative 1 and deviates once it crosses the Thalassery- Nadapuram road. After crossing Thalassery-Nadapuram road, the alignment traverse to the Chokli region and crosses the Chokli – Pookom road near to the 110 KV KSEB substation, Panoor. The alignment then traverses to north and cross the Nidubram- Vayalil peedika road near to Vayalilpeedika Bus stop and then coincides with the Alignment 1. [Type text] Page 4 Site Alternatives Comparing with alternative 1, the residential settlements affected by this alignment is vey less. But this alignment crosses the High Tension Line at two points, once near to Pettipalam at 3/400 chainage and once before it crosses Nidubram- Vayalil peedika road at 7/700 chainage. Alternative 3: This was the last alternative considered by the team, since the first alternative affects residential settlements and the second alternative warrants the construction of a tunnel, the team considered other possibilities along the study stretch and finally came across the possibility of Alternative 3. Alternative 3 utilizes the available (thodu, river?) in many portions, so that it will reduce the land acquisition. This alignment was considered by minimizing the effect to residential settlements. The terrain is comparatively plainer than the other two alignments. The length of this alignment is approximately 9.2 km. The alignment starts from Mahe river near to Trippangotoor- Pulloorkkara region utilizing the tributary of Mahe river. The alignment crosses Keezhmadam – Kaliikandy road near Ellithode. Then the alignment utilze the low elevation areas with low settlement near to Tharol sree bhagavathi temple, Muttamkavu Bhagavathi temple and crosses the Pookome – Elangode road near to Elangode ayappa Temple. Then the alignment traverses to East towards SH 38. The alignment crosses SH 38 near to Saroma Bus depot and Noor masjid. After crossing SH 38, the alignment orients along the north direction towards Thalassery – Panoor road. The alignment crosses Thalassery- Panoor road near to Kerala Gramin bank and Popular vehicles, Panoor. The alignment then turns to east towards the Chempad – Mokheri road and crosses Chempad Mokheri road near to Ram mandir and Yuvadhara Volleyball club. The alignment crosses Champad – Korara road near Kunnoth and finally reaches Kuyyalipuzha. Comparison of Alternatives [Type text] Page 5 Site Alternatives Factor Alternative 1 Alternative 2 Alternative 3 Length (km) 9.3 10.2 9.2 Terrain Plain Mostly plain, Rolling Comparatively more in one section plainer Elevation range 5-34 (10-20) 5 -36 (12-22) 5-22 (6-15) (Prominent) High cut/ tunnel 1 1 Nil Crossing HTL 2 1 0 Approximate no of High Medium Low houses affected. No of curves 6 7 4 Land Use Heavy Residential Moderate residential Uncultivated Lands settlements settlements Natural streams in Less Utilized Less Utilized Well Utilized alignment No of road crossing 8 7 9 [Type text] Page 6 Site Alternatives Second Cut Second is to connect Eranjoli River and Dharmadam river/Anjarakandy River. The length of this cut is nearly 300 meters. Three alternatives were considered for this cut. First Alternative Second Alternative Third Alternative Three alternatives were considered for this cut. The alternatives are marked above. [Type text] Page 7 Site Alternatives Alternative 1: the first alternative is utilizing the river mouth of the Eranjoli and Dharmadam River. This alternative was studied by NATPAC earlier. Since this alignment is in proximity to the sea, the effect of tidal variation and waves will creatures issues for the smooth maneuvering of the vessels. Alternative 2: This alternative utilizes the land area between the NH and Railway line. But considering this alignment may restrict the improvement of NH, Railway and even the waterway in future. So this alternative is less feasible. Alternative 3: This alternative is considered by acquiring land without affecting any structures. This alternative is a better choice compared to the last two alternatives. Third Cut Third cut is section between Anjarakandy River and Valapattanam River. The section is nearly of 15 km. Since the third cut is of approximately of 15 km in length, many options were considered in the initial stage of the study. But finally three alternatives were considered for third cut after eliminating the options that is found to be not feasible in the field visits. Three alternatives were considered for third cut. First Alternative: The first alternative starts from Anjarakandy River near to Thottamukku Muthappan temple and passes along the regions like Kadachira, Thottada, Chala, Thilanoor and Varam to reach the Valapatnam River. This alignment passes through moderate residential settlement areas. The length of this alternative