Kerala has expressed dismay at the reported decision of the Uttara Kannada district administration to temporarily abort the mission to locate lorry driver Arjun who was trapped in a massive landslip at Shirur in Karnataka.
Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan shot off a letter to his Karnataka counterpart Siddaramaiah on Sunday urging him to issue directions to continue the search operation till it yielded positive results. Minister for Public Works P.A. Mohamed Riyas, who visited the landslip site and held discussions with representatives of the Karnataka government on Friday and Saturday, expressed disappointment with the move to suspend the mission. He said the Uttara Kannada district administration had called off the mission arbitrarily without implementing the decisions taken at the joint meeting.
‘Breach of trust’
Terming it a breach of trust, he said, “They are going back on the decision to bring pontoons and tug boats to assist the search. We have conveyed our objection to the decision.” Mr. Riyas urged the Karnataka government to explore all possibilities to trace Arjun.
Appreciating the efforts taken by the search teams, Mr. Vijayan, in his letter, requested Mr. Siddaramaiah to continue the mission with augmented strength and using all needed equipment.
On Sunday, the 13th day of the mission, Karwar MLA Satish Krishna Sail and Uttara Kannada Deputy Commissioner Lakshmi Priya announced that the search operation would have to be called off temporarily since the divers failed to see through the turbulent waters of the river Gangavali where Arjun’s truck is believed to be stuck in the soil unleashed by the landslip.
‘Risky for divers’
They said the strong current in the river had made the operation risky for divers. The mission would have to wait for a barge to be transported by road from Trichy in Tamil Nadu to dredge the area where the lorry had been detected.
Kalliasseri MLA M. Vijin, who is also camping at the site, feared that the Karnataka government would call off the mission altogether. He said those from Kerala who were camping at the site were not informed about the decision to suspend the operation.
