MADIKERI: A team of geo-technical experts drawn from top institutes of the country will carry out a comprehensive study of the landslides in Karnataka, going into the causes and potential triggers. Following the massive casualties and devastation caused by landslides in Kerala and Karnataka, geologists and environmentalists have accused the governments of ignoring warning signs and failing to stop illegal quarrying in the Western Ghats and building on river beds.The team will comprise experts from Geological Survey of India, National Institute of Rock Mechanics (NIRM), Kolar Gold Fields, Indian Institute of Science (IISc), National Institute of Technology Karnataka and Mangaluru (NIT-K). Once the experts submit their report, the district administration may get clarity on measures to prevent such disasters and to rebuild keeping future dangers in mind. “A lot of arguments and counterarguments are made in regard to the cause of the landslides and the flood fury. The expert committee report is expected to clear the air. Policy decisions can be taken based on the scientific study,” a government official said.The Karnataka government has voiced objections to the K Kasturirangan committee which called for demarcation of ecologically sensitive areas in the Western Ghats to restrict construction activities, mining and land use changes. Earlier, a report by environmentalist Madhav Gadgil, which called for declaring the entire Western Ghats as ecologically sensitive and placing curbs on development, was junked by the Centre.Four scientists from GSI are already in the district and have visited various places. “On Tuesday, they visited Kundattikana village under the Karike gram panchayat limits. Locals had been complaining about a strange sound coming from the ground for the past few days,” said an official. “After investigations, we found that the sound was a result of groundwater movement. Due to heavy rainfall, the groundwater level increased in the area and the water table is fluctuating. This was causing a noise.”In other places hit by landslides, wild animals have strayed from forests, entering human habitats. In Tavur village near Bhagamandala, a tiger attacked the pet dog of a local resident on Monday.Meanwhile, it has been raining since Monday night in various flood-hit areas of the district, including Galibeedu, Madapura, Somawarpet and Kalur. “There is no let-up in the intensity of rain. If this continues, the rehabilitation process may be derailed,” said Arun Somanna, a resident of Madapura.Two scientists from the Hyderabad-based National Geophysical Research Institute installed a seismograph at Kodagu’s Navodaya School on Tuesday. This is the second seismograph to be installed in the state; the other one is in Dharwad. The equipment, imported from US, will detect and record earthquakes. An NGRI scientist who has been in Kodagu for three days confirmed mild tremors which could not be recorded in the Richter scale.

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