BELAGAVI:The residents of a newly constructed house in Hangarga village near Belagavi are living in fear as the floor in their house is getting hot. This has forced the family to shift to a makeshift tent outside the house and the family of nine is refusing to go back.
Hangarga is located about 15 km from Belagavi and the house was under construction for the last three years. For the last few days, the members of Kamble family had been feeling hot air coming out from the first step of the staircase. Gradually, the step turned hotter and the alarmed family decided not to live in the house.
The owners, Tukaram and Bhimappa Kamble, approached the local gram panchayat about the incident.
They, along with authorities concerned, reached the house to inspect the staircase. As the news spread, several people from the village and surrounding places thronged the house. Some of the villagers cautionedKamble that it is a sign of forthcoming tragedy.
A few others said that it was a signal of a hidden treasure below the house, for which they congratulated Kamble. But there were some who thought it could be a lava hotbed.
Assistant Commissioner Rajashree Jainapure along with geologist Arun D and authorities of Hubli Electricity Supply Company Limited (HESCOM) inspected the staircase.
The geologist has taken samples of mud by digging a hole below the foundation of the staircase. He is yet to confirm the scientific reason behind the staircase turning hot.
Meanwhile, civil engineer and interior decorator Subhash Hubalkar suspects that leakage of electricity may be the reason for the portion of the structure getting hot. “It has to be thoroughly checked,” he said.
Hubalkar recalled that he faced the same problem about a couple of years ago at his own residence.
“We realised that whenever there was power outage the staircase which was otherwise hot, used to be normal. We found out that an electric line was touching the staircase metal,” he said.