00:00 At least 16 persons were killed and 21 injured after a landslip induced by incessant rainfall
00:15 buried the hamlet of Irshalwadi in Raigarh district, 65 km from Mumbai.
00:21 The rescue and search operation at the hamlet resumed on Friday morning.
00:25 The landslide occurred around 11 pm on Wednesday at the tribal village situated on a hill slope
00:30 under Khalapur tehsil of the coastal district, around 80 km from Mumbai.
00:35 There are 228 residents in the village and the bodies of 16 have been recovered while
00:41 93 residents have been traced, officials said.
00:44 However, a total of 119 villagers are yet to be traced.
00:48 They include those who had gone out of the village to attend a marriage or for rice plantation
00:53 work.
00:54 Of the nearly 50 houses in the village, the landslide flattened 17, the officials said.
00:59 So, what caused the landslide in Irshalwadi in Maharashtra?
01:05 The tragedy was triggered by a sudden cloudburst which unleashed an unprecedented 40 mm rainfall
01:11 within a mere 24 hours.
01:13 This deluge eventually caused the entire hilltop to collapse onto the village, claiming lives
01:19 instantaneously, the experts said.
01:21 Environmentalists expressed deep concerns over the recurring soil erosion in the area,
01:26 primarily caused by the lack of vegetation and ongoing construction, quarrying and digging
01:31 activities in the vicinity.
01:33 These factors have made the terrains across the Sahyadri mountain range highly vulnerable
01:37 to such heavy rains, posing a significant threat to the lives of people residing at
01:42 the foothills.
01:43 This is not the first instance of such an incident in the western Ghats.
01:46 In 2014, a landslide occurred in the Malan village in the Ambigao tehsil of Pune district,
01:52 which killed 151.
01:53 In 2021, Thali village in Mahar tehsil of the district had witnessed a devastating landslide
01:59 following heavy rains, which claimed the lives of 84 persons, according to PTI.
02:04 In fact, as many as 302 people have died due to landslides in Raigarh district of Maharashtra
02:08 in the last 17 years, according to a survey of landslide-prone areas conducted by the
02:12 Disaster Management Department.
02:15 In 2005, 84 villages in Raigarh were expected to be affected by landslides.
02:20 In 2015, this figure rose to 103, while in 2022, the number of villages likely to be
02:25 hit by landslides is pegged at 211.
02:28 Thali, Juhi and Dasagaon villages in the districts were completely destroyed by landslides over
02:33 the past few years, it said.
02:35 Environmental activists blame uncontrolled quarrying for these disasters.
02:38 Hence, they want an immediate prohibition on all quarries operating across the hills
02:43 and a thorough examination of the eco-sensitive zones in the Raigarh and Thane districts.
02:48 Green groups are urging the government to conduct thorough assessments of all sites
02:52 in Navi Mumbai, Raigarh, Thane, Uran and other quarry locations.
02:55 They emphasize the importance of examining the seismic impact resulting from blasts at
02:59 all hills and construction sites, including the Navi Mumbai International Airport.
03:03 Taking these precautionary measures will help ensure the safety and environmental stability
03:07 of these regions.
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