Mangaluru: The search for Arjun and others, who went missing due to a landslide in the Gangavali River, has been called off by diver expert Eeshwar Malpe and his team. Malpe stated that the decision to end the mission was due to disagreements with the district administration.
Eeshwar Malpe, who voluntarily participated in the mission for Arjun, mentioned, “The district administration could not collaborate effectively with the dredging company. The Kanwar ASP behaved poorly, telling me not to try to be a hero. They requested that I not share any information about the search. We will only resume searching if the district administration requests it through formal channels. I apologize to Arjun’s family.”
Malpe, a local diver from Udupi, had been actively involved in the search, and it was he who found the logs from Arjun’s truck in the river yesterday and today.
Meanwhile, Kanwar MLA Satish Krishna Sale has come forward to counter Malpe’s statements, saying, “Malpe is constantly blaming the district administration. His claim of being denied permission is incorrect. His attempts to gather people through social media are apparent. The search using the dredger will continue for ten days. Retired Major General Indrabalan will arrive in Shirur on Monday. The naval team will reach Thirur on Tuesday.”
When the owner of the truck that Arjun was driving, Manaaf, expressed concern that Malpe’s withdrawal would affect the search, Arjun’s sister Anju responded by saying they wanted to avoid controversies. “The search should not pose a threat to Malpe’s life. The district administration has assured us that the search with the dredger will continue for another eight days,” Anju stated to the media.
The naval forces are conducting searches at the marked CP4 point in the river. Eeshwar Malpe reported that pieces of logs and a scooter had been found in the river just the previous day. Strong signals indicating the presence of metal have been received, and both the family and the army have requested that the search focus on the CP4 point, located in the mud bed between the river and the land.
Eeshwar Malpe, who went into the river yesterday, noted that vehicle remnants were found in two locations. Based on this, inspections were conducted at both sites, but only the front tire of the tanker truck involved in the landslide was recovered.
