KARWAR: A video clip and some photographs of a cobra protecting a broken idol of Lord Shiva on a hill, which is being levelled, has gone viral on social media. Though there is a rumour that the incident had happened in Sadashivagad on the outskirts of Karwar , the officials and locals working at the site have debunked the claim.The three-minute video shows a five-foot cobra, with its hood open, guarding the idol which was apparently found beneath the ground during excavation. The workers are seen trying to drive away the cobra from the area, but to no avail. The cobra stands its ground even after boulders are showered close to it using earthmovers. The video has been in circulation for a week now. Those in the video are heard speaking in Marathi.Though the area, where the hill is being levelled, resembles the hill in Sadashivagad here, workers and officials of the contract company which is entrusted with the levelling work have made it clear that no such incident has taken place there. The topography of the area resembles Sadashivagad fort. Sadashivagad, being a border town, has a large number of Konkani- and Marathi-speaking people. "Someone might have mistaken the place to be Sadashivagad, triggering the rumour," an official said, adding: "We suspect that the incident might have happened in a coastal area of Maharashtra ."The historic fort built by Sode king Sadashivaraya atop the hill near river Kali was captured by king Shivaji and British and Portuguese rulers during different times. It is being levelled by the district administration for widening National Highway-66. The hill was first divided into two to build a road in early '80s. Standing on the hill, one can catch a view of the confluence of Kali river and the Arabian Sea.The video has now brought the area into "limelight", with people from Karwar and Goa visiting it.

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