Daijiworld Media Network – Mangaluru (Lerisa)

Udupi: June 6: With the onset of monsoon in the coastal belt, the residents of Santhur, Mudarangadi have grown apprehensive of the worrisome condition of the temporary, unreliable bridge that is carefully used by the residents for their daily purposes.

David D Souza, a resident of Udupi, shared a post on Facebook, highlighting the pitiful condition of a bridge, joining two ends, and below it is a seasonal stream, which flows incessantly during the rainy days.

David Dsouza said this problem has gone unaddressed for quite a long time. He has blamed the panchayat committee for failing to take note of this problem. He said Rs 50,000 had been set aside by the gram panchayat for this particular work, but the execution of work was never been taken up. He claims that the members of the panchayat have done nothing to address this issue except for giving them a false promise of completing the work soon. The locals have been informed that as per their request, Rs 2 lacs was said to be earmarked for this project as per the details given by the Gram Panchayat president Yogini Shetty and the committee president Sharath Shetty.

The safety of the students who strive to make their way through the difficult terrain is of paramount importance. David Dsouza points out that the ignorance of the gram panchayat members and some disillusioned matters have contributed to the prevailing condition.

Subbu, a local resident said the panchayat members have taken no action so far in the matter, despite several requests being made. He said the situation gets extremely pathetic on rainy days. He also mentioned that his family members have fallen from the logs quite a few times. In a pitiful tone, he said that the kids nearby have a lot of difficulty while going to school. They have also fallen and got injured on many occasions. “Our last resort would be to act on this issue ourselves, since the gram panchayat members aren’t lending us any support.”, Subbu said unhappily.

He requests that little support be given to them, just enough for the bridge to be made walkable and nothing more. He also mentioned that the kids faced major difficulty while heading to school and back. Although there was a road, it was at a distance of around 7 – 8 km.

One of the kids said this was causing them a lot of inconvenience as they would get badly hurt, falling off the slippery ground. When there was a downpour, all their books would get wet and they would get themselves get drenched completely. She also said that she had been badly hurt quite a lot of times, falling off the bridge.

Subbu asserted that they would go to the Deputy Commissioner if the situation wasn’t addressed soon.