ANSHI (UTTARA KANNADA DISTRICT): Anshi Ghat, which has been closed due to landslides for the last 10 days, will remain closed for at least three to four months as a huge patch of forest has caved in and has blocked the state highway connecting Karwar and Belagavi. The district administration has sought help from the army or the state government has to address the issue.
As rain has come to a halt at present, the damage assessment has begun. Karwar will remain cut off from Haliyal, Dandeli, Dharwad and Belagavi for at least the next three months.The ghats will not just act as a connectivity to these places but is also a supply line of essential commodities to coastal towns of Karwar and Ankola. Essential commodities like milk, eggs and vegetables for the weekly market are transported via this stretch.
The 20-km stretch which snakes through the Western Ghats has witnessed four landslides, much to the agony of the district administration. Uttara Kannada Deputy Commissioner Mullai Muhilan told TNIE, “We never expected the landslide to be of this magnitude. Initially we thought it would be a common landslide. However, as we dug further, we realised there has been immense damage in the ghats. It is even beyond our imagination.We have sought assistance from the state government. We are in the process of discussion.”