The Puttur Rural police on Saturday booked the drivers of two lorries, which were filled with coffee, for travelling on Shiradi Ghat despite a bar on movement of vehicles. In a press release, the police said a police team at the Gundiya check-post stopped the two lorries bringing coffee from Kushalanagar to Mangaluru.
The drivers of the two lorries had come down the Ghat from Hassan by disregarding the bar on movement of vehicles imposed by the Deputy Commissioners of Hassan and Dakshina Kannada in light of frequent landslips in the region.
The police took Riyaz, 38, of Deralakatte and Mohan, 37, of Uppinangady into custody and seized the two lorries. As the offence against the two drivers was non-cognisable in nature, the police reported the case to the jurisdictional court that granted permission to book the two drivers for the offence under Section 188 (Disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant) of the Indian Penal Code and under Section 177 (punishment for offences under the act) of the Motor Vehicles Act.
Dakshina Kannada Deputy Commissioner Sasikanth Senthil S. banned the movement of vehicles on Shiradi Ghat from August 16 to 25. On Saturday, he further extended the ban until further orders.
