Udupi: Dream comes true at last - Bavali Kudru bridge ready for use
Suvarna Brahmavar
Daijiworld Media Network – Udupi (SP)
Udupi, May 22: The Bavali Kudru connecting bridge, which has been built to provide direct communication to Bavalikudru near Neelavar in the taluk, is ready for use. With this, the dream of Bavali Kudru residents, who had approached various government officials and political leaders with a request to provide them a safe way to cross over to the mainland, has materialized finally.
Bavali Kudru is an isle measuring about 85 acres. Most of the families residing here are Christian. They had no other go but to use boats for their everyday needs till now. In 2002, the government, bowing under pressure from these residents, had prepared a project report for Rs 33 lac for the bridge, but only about five lac rupees was released then for the project.
In 2008-09, Rajya Sabha member, Oscar Fernandes, sanctioned Rs 15 lac from out of his MP Local Area Development Fund. Still, the work did not start, and the villagers continued to pursue the issue through representations and media reports.
MLA Raghupati Bhat then planned to complete the project by releasing five lac rupees from his grant, Rs 15 lac from the fund of Oscar Fernandes, and the balance, from the zilla panchayat. On April 23, 2011, the then higher education minister, Dr V S Acharya, laid the foundation stone for the bridge.
Although pillars were built initially, the works stopped because of financial crunch. The villagers brought pressure on the authorities again, and works began thereafter. Finally, the villagers have got a chance to reach their homes by foot instead of boats.
Absence of power, telephone connections, death of sick people because of inability to provide immediate treatment, high absenteeism in schools during monsoon season, need to cross the river to conduct farming etc had compelled the people of the isle to pursue the demand for bridge relentlessly.
Now their long-standing demand has been met out of grants sanctioned by Oscar Fernandes (Rs 15 lac), the late Dr V S Acharya (Rs 5 lac), former MLA Raghupati Bhat (Rs 5 lac), natural calamity fund (Rs 13 lac), and MP Jayaprakash Hegde (Rs 5 lac). The total cost of the bridge is about Rs 50 lac. The people are happy that their dream has come true before the onset of monsoon.