Kozhikode/ Shirur: The Karnataka government will resume the search for Kozhikode native Arjun, who went missing in the landslide in Ankola's Shirur, on Tuesday. A high-level meeting held at Karwar took the decision. A team from the Indian Navy will lead the search in the Gangavali River.
The Karnataka government has temporarily suspended the search operations for Arjun and two others on July 28 after bad weather conditions and strong currents in the river continued to interrupt the efforts of the search personnel including the Army and Navy. Underwater search expert Eshwar Malpe who had dived into the deep waters said that zero visibility in the turbulent waters turned the search a tough task.
It is suspected that the truck carrying Arjun plunged into the river when the landslide struck National Highway 66 in Shirur. Though the army detected the presence of a large metal object in the river bed during a search using an advanced drone, they are yet to find whether the truck is on this spot.
On Sunday, Dakshina Kannada district collector Lakshmi Priya told media that the search would resume only when the underwater currents in the river decrease to 3.5 knots from 5.4 knots. As of now, the speed is less than 3 knots.
Arjun, a truck driver from Kozhikode went missing following a massive landslide in Shirur on July 16. Even after a 13-day-long search in land and water, there is no clue about Arjun. It is suspected that Arjun is trapped inside the truck that got buried under the mud accumulated on the river following the landslide. Meanwhile, Dakshina Kannada district authority confirmed that no human presence was detected in the riverbed during the search using various devices.
