Central team inspects rain-, flood-hit areas

The three-member interministerial Central team continued its visit to the rain- and flood-affected parts of Dakshina Kannada district on Thursday.

The team is headed by Bhartendu Kumar Singh, deputy secretary, Union Ministry of Finance, visited Bantwal, Puttur and Sullia taluks with Deputy Commissioner Sasikanth Senthil. The team collected information from the officials on the damage.

The team inspected collapsed retaining wall adjacent to the new vented dam at Thumbe. The dam supplies water to Mangaluru city, Ullal and Mulki. They later visited Moolarapatna bridge built across River Phalguni that collapsed on June 25 and also collected information from the officials on the alternative routes for the people of the region. The bridge is on the district main road that provides connectivity from Edapadavu in Mangaluru taluk and passes via Kuppepadavu, Arala-Muthooru-Bantwal.

They also inspected the damage caused by a landslide along the road that provides connectivity to school at Kallaje in Indabettu Gram Panchayat limits. The team visited Kukke Subrahmanya and inspected the damage on Shiradi Ghat following multiple landslides, before leaving for Hassan district.

The team visited Vitlapadnur and Kaniyur village wherein areca nut plantations were affected with fruit rot disease. The farmers said that they have lost 80% of the crops in fruit rot disease affecting areca nut.