Crater on Ridge creates panic

However, Shimla Municipal Corporation Mayor Narender Kataria said the deep hole had emerged on the Ridge as result of sinking of stones and debris around the sluice pipe used for draining dirty water from the storage tank beneath the Ridge. 8220;It is not a serious thing and work has been started to close it,8221; said the Mayor.

However, the technical staff of the MC denied that the crater had appeared due to sinking of soil and maintained that it had been purposely created since the construction of the Ridge many years ago to monitor the drain leading out of the water tank. They claimed that the hole was opened up today to carry out some repair work.

The heavy rains in September had also posed a threat to the Ridge as the land on the northwest hill side had sunk after being washed away and half of the Ridge towards Scandal Point was cordoned off for safety reasons at that time.

The Municipal Corporation has already approached the Asian Development Bank with a detailed proposal for long-term restoration of the Ridge and to prevent it from further sinking. The work is expected to involve an estimated cost of about Rs 3 crore.