Daijiworld Media Network - Kundapur (MS)

Kundapur, Apr 10: Slab of the auctioning area of much-expected Rs 12 crore project of Gangolli fisheries port collapsed two years ago. Now the reconstruction work has started.

The work of removing the jetty that is collapsed is in progress. The jetty collapsed on October 13, 2018. So it could not be used by fishermen for the past two years. The second auctioning area was also about to be collapsed. But the department took immediate action by removing the slab of the second auctioning point. Local fishermen were continuously pressurizing the government to carry out the reconstruction work of the jetty.

The state cabinet had approved Rs 12 crore for the reconstruction of the jetty in Feb 2020 under the recommendation of the then fisheries minister Kota Srinivas Poojary. However, due to the chaos in the tender process, the work got delayed. Later with the intervention of the fisheries minister and due to the efforts of MLA Sukumar Shetty and MP B Y Raghavendra, all the obstacles were cleared and work started on February 26.

Gangolli port has more than 300 purse seine boats, 600 other boats and 500 traditional boats. Moreover, thousands of fishermen use this port for their livelihood. However, at present out of the 405-meter long fishing jetty, only 150 meter is available for the use of fishermen. This is causing inconvenience for the fishermen to anchor their boats every day.

Breakwater construction at a cost of Rs 102 crore is almost complete at Gangolli backwater area. However, silt has accumulated in the backwater area and there is a possibility that this may cause a hurdle for the boats to sail freely.