Daijiworld Media Network - Puttur (SP)

Puttur, Feb 2: People had raised objections to the initiative undertaken by sand contractors to lay road across River Nethravati within the limits of Ilanthila village near Uppinangady for the extraction of sand from the river and supplying the same for national highway widening work. The revenue department too had intervened and instructed the concerned to stop the road work. But the sand contractors have ignored both these efforts and completed the work on the road by Wednesday February 1 evening.

Many had complained that construction of road inside the river blocks the flow of water and contaminates river water and this had been carried by different print and social media. After the deputy commissioner of Dakshina Kannada district instructed the concerned to conduct scrutiny, Uppinangady revenue inspector, Prasanna Pakkala, and village accountant, Chandra Nair, had visited the spot and conducted inspection.

Pakkala had thereafter clarified that he would send a report to the deputy commissioner about the road being laid without obtaining any permission, and that flowing water would be blocked because of the road. He also had said that water of the river was becoming polluted and that it will have adverse effect on water being supplied to Mangaluru city through Thumbay vented dam. The road, once built, may also be misused for other purposes in future, he had said.

But as soon as he went back, the work on the road was resumed and finished by evening, it is gathered. The road was being laid since January 31. After the deputy commissioner of the district came to know about it, it is said that he had instructed to suspend the work. If the order was issued, the question as to whether the sand contractors chose to overlook his instruction, has arisen now.