Ooty: The National Highways administration has begun work on erecting an eco-friendly gabion retaining wall along the slopes near Manthada junction along the Ooty NH.
The NH sources said that though the gabion wall is an old technology, necessary new era touches have been given to make this wall extra strong to protect the road in a natural way along the slopes. In the gabion wall technology, steel and geo-synthetic materials are being used and stones arranged or stacked in small wired chambers called gabion. The individual gabions are tied together to make it a strong, yet, eco-friendly retaining wall. Cement and mortar are avoided in gabion technology. “In the Manthada area, a gabion wall is being constructed to a length of around 75 meters and 13 meters high with a little over three feet width,” NH sources explained.
“The positivism of the gabion wall is that it allows free flow of storm water and other percolating water along the slopes. Thus, it controls the pressure of water in the walls so that damage done to the slopes due to high water pressure during rainy days is checked. Naturally this leads to control of soil erosion.
The NH administration plans to construct such a wall in the narrow bend near Katteri park. After identifying other sensitive landslip prone spots along the Ooty NH, these type of gabion walls will be erected,” NH sources maintained.
