Ankola landslide: Search for Arjun in Gangavali river to resume tomorrow

Kozhikode/ Shirur: Expert diver Eshwar Malpe got the nod on Tuesday to resume the search operation for the three persons who went missing in the Shirur landslide, including Kozhikode native Arjun, in the Gangavali River. Arjun was en route to Kerala from Karnataka with a truck loaded with wood when the landslide happened on July 16.

Malpe, during his search on Tuesday, recovered a Hydraulic jack from the river, almost 100 feet distance from the shore. Truck owner Manaf confirmed that it was from his vehicle.

However, the search operation has been suspended for the day. Malpe, along with his team of three divers will resume the search in the river on Wednesday. Navy personnel are also expected to join them.

Malpe earlier told the media that it was the Karwar MLA's intervention that got his team permission to dive into the river. He said the search will be held for two hours on Tuesday and will continue tomorrow with the help of fishermen familiar with the waters. "We hope to find the missing persons today itself. The undercurrent, at two knots, seems favourable to carry out the search," said Malpe.

Arjun's relatives said they were happy the MLA intervened and that the entire family's hope rested on Malpe now.

All eyes were on Shirur as the Karnataka government announced that the Navy would resume the search for Kozhikode youth Arjun who went missing in the massive landslide on National Highway 66 on Tuesday. However, reports confirmed that no Navy personnel reached Shirur yet.

Talking to Manorama News, Arjun's brother-in-law Jithin expressed disappointment over the delay in the search and said that current weather conditions in Shirur are favourable for launching the search. He added that the Dakshina Kannada district authority would not break its trust. 

“ No rain has been reported in Shirur for the past five days. It is learnt that the underwater currents also decreased. The district authority should not miss this chance for the search. I don't think a search using radar will yield any results. Underwater search should be carried out without wasting time,” he told Manorama News.

The Navy personnel was expected to resume the search for Arjun on Tuesday morning. Manorama News reported the navy had planned for a the search using Ground Penetrating Radar. To locate the truck, the riverbed will be scanned using underwater sonar, focusing on two previously marked locations. A decision on permitting the diving experts to search Gangavali river will be made after assessing the speed of the water flow.

In addition to Arjun, two Karnataka natives are also missing from the location following the landslide on July 16. 

Kerala forest minister A K Saseendran has informed that the Karnataka government has promised that the search will resume. He also conveyed the concerns raised by Arjun’s family to the Chief Minister and Deputy Chief Ministers of Karnataka. Earlier, Arjun's family had criticised the Uttara Kannada district administration for the delay in resuming the search mission. Jithin, Arjun’s brother-in-law, stated that the family would launch a protest in Shirur if the search was not resumed within a couple of days.

Arjun was driving a BharatBenz truck loaded with 40 tonnes of timber logs from Belagavi to Kozhikode when it was swept into the river during the landslide on July 16. He was resting in front of a tea shop in Shirur on the Panvel-Kanyakumari NH-66 when the landslide occurred. Focused search operations for Arjun involving multiple teams began on July 20, but inclement weather conditions have slowed the mission. The search operations were temporarily halted the search operations on July 28.