Historical MoU between MIA and PRED to prevent floods

For the first time in the history of 70-year-old Mangaluru International Airport (MIA), its CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) funds to the tune of a whopping Rs 7 crore was utilised to fund stormwater drainage works in Malavoor village of the Gram Panchayat, on city’s outskirts.

Until 2018, Malavoor, Kenjar, Karambar and the surrounding villages on the northern end of the airport did not have storm drains but natural ‘nalahas’ (thodu) which eventually drained into River Palguni.

Post Air India Express Flight 812 crash in 2010, the court of Inquiry (CoI) and Director General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) had made it mandatory for the Airport Authority of India (AAI) to increase the runway width from 75 to 150 metres, on the northern side of the existing airstrip in MIA.

Subsequently, the state government awarded 36 acres of land free of cost to AAI for extending the runway. On completion of the runway, the district administration had insisted on a proper stormwater drainage system as the table-top airport’s altitude was above 100 metres from the villages located below.

AAI refusal

AAI however refused to fund the works and maintained that it cannot take up any works beyond its jurisdiction. On May 29, 2018, the district and airport area witnessed heavy rainfall in the range between 300 to 330 mm.

In the absence of proper outlets, water and silt from the runway flooded homes and paddy fields in Malavoor and Karambar located on the foothills of the airport.

Due to the large scale destruction of properties and crops, Dakshina Kannada MP Nalin Kumar Kateel had rushed to the villages and taken officials to task.

Following pressure from all sides, AAI, with help of Hydraulics and Applied Mechanics, NITK, undertook a survey in Malavoor village and decided to build a stormwater drainage system in Malavoor, initially at a cost of Rs 15.72 crore.

The signing of the MoU

After a joint inspection by AAI officials and Panchayat Raj Engineering Department (PRED), the cost of the project was trimmed down to Rs 6.75 crore.

On September 14, 2018, an MoU was signed between then MIA Director V V Rao representing AAI and PRED representing the Dakshina Kannada deputy commissioner.

In the MoU, MIA and the engineering department agreed to design and build a drainage system, as per the norms of the National Disaster Management System, to prevent future flood-type situations.

In May 2019, following demands from local elected representatives, additional works worth over Rs 67 lakh were added.

Then Malavoor Panchayat PDO Venkatramana Prakash said works were completed and handed over to the panchayat (now upgraded as Town Panchayat) in May 2020.

According to information obtained from MIA and PRED under RTI by DH, the works were implemented at a cost of Rs 7,39,01,998.

According to the MoU, a retaining wall and seven stormwater drains were constructed at a total cost of over Rs 6.16 crore.

G Wilfred Mathias, a resident of Karambar, said all the rainwater from the runway was unscientifically diverted to the storm drain (no 3 in Padebettu). Thus, in order to avoid a repeat of the 2018 flooding, he had built a new house further down.

Information under an RTI revealed that the contractor, Anwar Sadath, had desilted agricultural lands at an estimated cost of Rs 39 lakh.

Jayashankar Shetty of Karambar Gutthu told DH that the silt from the airport deposited in his 30 cents farm was never removed.

“Due to silt deposition, my farm stopped yielding. I have also not received any compensation so far,” Shetty lamented.