Udupi: Sea Erosion Relief Works in Undivided DK District Dogged by Apathy
 
Report and Pics by Hemanath Padubidri
Daijiworld Media Network – Udupi (RD/SP)
 
Udupi, Jul 21: The sea erosion in the undivided Dakshina Kannada (DK) district has been a burning issue since the last many years. But, it has not been solved effectively.  No sooner the monsoon sets in across the coastal district, sea erosion-prone locations such as Mangalore, Ullal, Sasihitlu, Padubidri, Yermal, Katpady, Padukere, Badanidiyoor, Sude, Kemman, and Maravanthe etc., start making headlines.  Several modest houses belonging to low and middle income groups, beach houses of businessmen etc., are located along the coastline of Arabian Sea, in utter disregard to the norms of Coastal Regulatory Zone (CRZ).  The elected representatives and state administration also get due publicity, while taking up the issue of sea erosion of coastal belts during the monsoon season.  Meanwhile, once the monsoon bids comes to an end, the problem of sea erosion turns into a forgotten issue.

 
Despite the assurances doled out in the past by many state administrations about finding a permanent solution to the menace of sea erosion, by methods such as the building break water walls along the coast, the issue remains unsolved.  The people’s representatives, ministers and officers arrive at the sea erosion locations at the height of monsoon, while the ministers waste the tax payers’ money on foreign tours, in the guise of undertaking studying the effective method of curbing the sea erosion.  In spite of countless visits by dignitaries and study tours, the issue of sea erosion in the undivided DK remains the same, deadly, life-threatening and unpredictable. 
 
The people’s representatives and officials, who arrive at the sea erosion-affected locations during the incessant rains, advise the local administration to undertake temporary measures like dumping of boulders along the water line and stacking sand bags.  The contractor who bags these contracts makes money on the contract and also allegedly shares the same with officials on a common understanding.  The coastal residents, who had built their houses close to the shore without checking the CRZ norms, also pose a problem to the government in relocating their houses.  Meanwhile, the issue of sea erosion can be effectively confronted by restricting the construction of houses and planting of saplings on those locations that have been experiencing fierce sea erosion during this year.  Furthermore, the officials should think about relocating the houses that are threatened by the sea erosion, at the earliest.