MANGALURU: Even while no river in Karnataka figures in the list of rivers facing extreme, severe and above normal flood situation levels as per flood forecast monitoring directorate of Central Water Commission, Dakshina Kannada district administration is not leaving anything to chance. While gearing up entire machinery to meet any eventuality from continuing down pour, the administration has people in low lying areas to shift to safer places.With district receiving 128% more rain at 3,564mm from January 1 to date against 2779.9mm in corresponding period last year, district has suffered its share of woes, S Sasikanth Senthil, deputy commissioner, said. Having visited the low lying areas in Bantwal and Puttur taluks during the day, Senthil said people for their own safety have been advised to move out. For those who are not able to do so, the administration will set up gruel centres, he said.With one such gruel centre set up in Bantwal to mitigate suffering of people residing along the bank of swollen Nethravathi, another will be set up in Mangaluru latest by Wednesday, DC said. Advisory has been sent to fishermen not to venture out to Sea. People have been asked to stay away from all river banks and swollen water bodies for their own safety, he said adding Coast Guard rescued fishermen in two fishing boats off Malpe, he said.A 24x7 control room will function to address disaster management issues and people in need may call it on 1077. District level officers have been tasked with management of low lying areas prone to flooding in addition to taluk level officials already directed to do so, he said. Ten boats have been placed at vulnerable points to aid in rescue efforts, he said adding services of NDRF Company has been requisitioned for Dakshina Kannada.Noting that the Nethravathi at 8.6m was flowing above the danger mark, DC said there is no cause for alarm in that high flood level (HFL) for the river was 11 metres in 1974. The river is ebbing and rising steadily. Even the Nethravathi at Uppinangady at 29.6m is below HFL of 32m in 2013. The Kumaradhara is flowing at 25m at Puttur and people have been advised to stay away from their confluence at Uppinangady Sahasralingeshwara Temple.On the three critical Ghat stretches that connect this coastal city to state capital, Senthil said while the Sampaje Ghat is motorable, the just reopened Shirady Ghat is functioning in fits and starts given landslips at multiple places. Traffic is moving slowly along Shirady, he said, adding Sampaje is presently out of bounds due to floods in Kodagu. Motorists may check updated status of these Ghats on www.dk.kar.nic.in before travel, he said.Administration had submitted proposal worth Rs 26 crore to state government under calamity relief. Asserting that relief work worth Rs 10 crore is either in the pipeline or already taken up, Senthil told TOI that quick back of envelope calculation of loss to public property in DK is around Rs 50 crore. If one takes loss to private property as per their condition prior to onset of the monsoon , the loss could be in the region of Rs 100 crore, Senthil surmised.The administration has delegated powers of declaring holiday to schools especially in Belthangady, Puttur and Sullia to taluk level officials there based on local conditions, he said. Situation in urban Mangaluru is more manageable and parents should take a call on sending their wards to school after ensuring their safety. “Safety of children is more important compared to college going teenagers who can take care of themselves,” he said.

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