MANGALURU: Concerned over the rising number of Covid cases in Kerala, the Dakshina Kannada district administration will shut 9 roads that connect the neighbouring state with the district, from Monday, 6 am onwards.
There are 14 roads that connect the district with Kerala, out of which only Talapady (Mangaluru taluk), Saradka (Bantwal), Menala (Puttur), Nettanige Mudnur (Puttur) and Jalsur (Sullia) will be kept open.
The decision is likely to affect thousands, especially students and employees who commute between Dakshina Kannada and Kasaragod districts daily.
Now, they have to take a longer way to reach their destination, which will not only be tiresome but also leave a hole in their pockets. The decision will also hit people’s movements within the district at some places.
People travelling between Mudipu and Salethur in Bantwal taluk a distance of 10 km through the inter-state border of Pathur will now have to take a circuitous route via Manchi-Ira which will be six kilometres longer. Dakshina Kannada Deputy Commissioner KV Rajendra said they had no option but to shut most of the borders with Kerala as the movement of people is very high between the border districts.
“It is a porous border and more than 2 lakh people travel between the district every day. Though a Covid negative report has been made mandatory for daily travellers once in a fortnight, implementing the same will be a challenging task if entry points are open. Hence, some points had to be closed,” he said.