Karkal: Death meets three Young Girls in a Quarry Pond

By Snehalatha, Udupi
Bellevision Media Network

Karkal, 27 Sept 2012: When death comes it comes many ways and that too unexpectedly.  We have heard so many deaths reccently especially in the rainy season wherein most of the ponds were filled to the brim and had been utilized these ponds by locals for emergency washing and bathing and children having fun swimming.  But this is a different case altogether.  In Kakala taluke many quarries were filled due to monson and the three young women namely Rathnamma (20) , Hulegamma (18) and Bharthi (18) were washing their clothes in a Quarry pond, at Nelligudde, Suda Kalya Village, and met with a tragic death on September 26.  While they were washing one of them slipped to the pond accidentaly and since she could not swim, the other two tried to save her frantically and they too were drowned and met with tragic death.

 

All threee of them Rathnamma, Hulegamma, and Bharthi who hailed from Gadag District and  were working in the quarry as daily wagers.  Normally all the workers use these ponds to have bath and also use the water for washing clothes. 

 

There being many quarries in Nelligudde, Suda Kalya Village, water gets deposited in the quarries during monsoon time, which creates a dangerous situation. This being the case, the local residents have expressed their anger over the negligence of the authorities concerned in solving the problem. There are a number of stone mining units which are active in the region with the permission of the mining department. But after finishing the quarry work, the contractors or the concerned authorities are not making any arrangements to fill the quarry ponds or take other safety measures. Although the contractors or the owners of the quarry earn money in lakhs, but they are not bothered about the safety of their daily wage labourers. And that is sad .

 

Every year during the mansoon season many death occur and this year too we have heard of deaths in Mangalore, in Udupi/Kundapur more than 10 deaths reported so far in addition to these three deaths  The investigation being initiated to find out the exact cause of the deaths.