Udupi: With the sea rough, officials decide to scrap Karnataka’s first floating bridge In Malpe on Sunday. The sabotage which started on Sunday evening continued till Monday morning.
But as the weather improved, the bridge was restored on Monday evening. But many pictures and videos of demolished The bridge went viral on social media on Monday morning, treating it as an act of nature, with claims that the bridge was damaged after being hit by heavy waves.
Udupi Municipal Commissioner and Secretary, Malpe Development Committee Uday Shetty said, the sea was rough due to the cyclone and it was unsafe to get close to the water. Therefore water sports activities in Malpe till further orders of the district administration. beach remain suspended. There will be no ferry service to take tourists to St. Mary’s Island.
Sudesh Shetty, lessee, Malpe beach And the owner, Dial Mantra, told TOI that water sports activities and the floating bridge at Malpe beach were closed at 4 pm on Sunday.
“Boats and jet skis can be anchored in a safe place. However, we need at least two days to break the bridge. So, when we started removing the center pin to make the job go faster, the pontoon blocks shattered to the side. We ran to break the bridge and some blocks got damaged. The 100-metre long and 3.5-metre-wide bridge comprises 1,700 blocks, of which around 100 have been damaged and will be replaced accordingly.
Shetty clarified that the project has been undertaken on a trial basis and is a learning experience for the team as well. “At the moment, the bridge has been reset and the length has been reduced slightly. The winds keep getting stronger. The bridge will be opened for the public as soon as the green signal is received from the district administration. A team of engineers is closely monitoring the bridge,” he said.
Meanwhile, several pictures and videos went viral on social media on Monday morning, with claims that the bridge was damaged after being hit by heavy waves. “Some of the blocks have been damaged because we left the blocks in the water knowing they would remain on the shore. Since around 15,000 people went to the beach on Sunday evening, many were shocked to see the blocks stretched and the bridge was demolished the next day,” he said.
The floating bridge, which was inaugurated by MLA Raghupati Bhat on Friday, has been built at a cost of Rs 80 lakh. The project is supported by a team of Sudesh Shetty, Shekhar Puthran, businessman and Dhananjay Kanchan, president, Ayappa Swamy Temple, Malpe and Hanuman Vitoba Bhajan Mandali. Sudesh Shetty said a visitor has to pay Rs 100 and can walk on the bridge for 15 minutes wearing a life jacket.
But as the weather improved, the bridge was restored on Monday evening. But many pictures and videos of demolished The bridge went viral on social media on Monday morning, treating it as an act of nature, with claims that the bridge was damaged after being hit by heavy waves.
Udupi Municipal Commissioner and Secretary, Malpe Development Committee Uday Shetty said, the sea was rough due to the cyclone and it was unsafe to get close to the water. Therefore water sports activities in Malpe till further orders of the district administration. beach remain suspended. There will be no ferry service to take tourists to St. Mary’s Island.
Sudesh Shetty, lessee, Malpe beach And the owner, Dial Mantra, told TOI that water sports activities and the floating bridge at Malpe beach were closed at 4 pm on Sunday.
“Boats and jet skis can be anchored in a safe place. However, we need at least two days to break the bridge. So, when we started removing the center pin to make the job go faster, the pontoon blocks shattered to the side. We ran to break the bridge and some blocks got damaged. The 100-metre long and 3.5-metre-wide bridge comprises 1,700 blocks, of which around 100 have been damaged and will be replaced accordingly.
Shetty clarified that the project has been undertaken on a trial basis and is a learning experience for the team as well. “At the moment, the bridge has been reset and the length has been reduced slightly. The winds keep getting stronger. The bridge will be opened for the public as soon as the green signal is received from the district administration. A team of engineers is closely monitoring the bridge,” he said.
Meanwhile, several pictures and videos went viral on social media on Monday morning, with claims that the bridge was damaged after being hit by heavy waves. “Some of the blocks have been damaged because we left the blocks in the water knowing they would remain on the shore. Since around 15,000 people went to the beach on Sunday evening, many were shocked to see the blocks stretched and the bridge was demolished the next day,” he said.
The floating bridge, which was inaugurated by MLA Raghupati Bhat on Friday, has been built at a cost of Rs 80 lakh. The project is supported by a team of Sudesh Shetty, Shekhar Puthran, businessman and Dhananjay Kanchan, president, Ayappa Swamy Temple, Malpe and Hanuman Vitoba Bhajan Mandali. Sudesh Shetty said a visitor has to pay Rs 100 and can walk on the bridge for 15 minutes wearing a life jacket.