Rain hits travel, tourism in coastal, Malnad regions

Coastal and Malnad regions have been virtually cut off due to heavy rainfall that has resulted in suspension of transport services, with several roads completely inundated.

Travel and tourism have taken a hit as hotel bookings have been canceled in these regions.

Between 6 am and 11.50 pm on Thursday, as many as 74 buses with advanced reservation were cancelled from Bengaluru towards Mangaluru, Dharmasthala, Puttur, Udupi, Kundapura, Kukke Subramanya and other areas, according to the Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation.

Authorities issued orders to close down roads via Shiradi and Sampage ghats, Kushalnagar-Hassan state highway, Bhagamandala-Ayyengeri road among other district and village roads due to landslides, mudslides and waterlogging. Movement of vehicles on Shiradi Ghat has been banned till August 25.

Two national highway stretches - Madikeri to Mangaluru and Sakleshpur to Mangaluru - have been rendered unusable, a senior Public Works Department official said. Engineers are unable to clear debris accumulated on the road owing to incessant rainfall. Restoration can be taken up only after the rains cede, the official said.

The train track between Hassan, Sakleshpur and Subrahmanya has been “severely affected” and will require a minimum of one week to be restored, officials said.

It is also feared that production and supply of coconut, arecanut, cashew, pepper, cardamom, ginger among other commercial and horticulture crops widely grown in the coastal and Malnad regions may be briefly affected.

“The top soil has eroded in the Ghat area leading to landslides and inundation in multiple locations, blocking most of the arterial roads,” Revenue department principal secretary (disaster management) Gangaram Baderiya said.

At least four bridges in the Chikkodi taluk of Belagavi were reportedly submerged due to overflowing water from Krishna and its tributaries.