Summary:
He appealed to authorities to ensure that the place is kept clean and nobody throws garbage into the pond where river Shalmala originates. Dharwad: Environmentalists in Dharwad took up cleaning of river Shalmala’s place of origin near Someshwar temple in Dharwad.The river which originates in Dharwad flows underground and joins Bedthi stream in Uttara Kannada district and then joins the 161-km long Gangavali. It becomes river Shalmala near Sirsi and joins the Arabian Sea at Manjaguni near Ankola.The place of the river’s origin was unreachable as it was surrounded by mounds of garbage thrown by devotees visiting a nearby temple.The stream was also choked because of the garbage. About 30 members of Nature Research Center , a non-government organization under the leadership of its president P V Hiremath and secretary Prakash Goudar, went to the spot and cleared the garbage and enabled free flow of the stream with the help of an earth mover.Director of Water and Land Management Institute ( WALMI ) Rajendra Poddar who was present said it was sad that the people did not understand the importance of protecting and preserving rivers and other water bodies at a time when the entire country is facing the threat of water shortage.He said he would organize a workshop at WALMI to create awareness about maintaining rivers and streams to prevent flooding.Nearly five quintals of garbage was removed from the stream..