Day after 5 deaths in Visvesvaraya Canal, guard rails erected

MANDYA: A day after five people died after their car plunged into the Visvesvaraya Canal near Balaghatta in the taluk, the local authorities put up guard rails and cleared the growth of weeds near the spot where the accident occurred.

This followed MLA Darshan Puttannaiah’s directive to the officials earlier in the day after holding a meeting.

The postmortem examination of the deceased was conducted at the Pandavapura government hospital after which the bodies were handed over to the families.

The car was lifted out of the water on Tuesday night.

The taluk administration has decided to giver Rs 2 lakh each to the families of the deceased, but the relatives are demanding Rs 5 lakh each.

So far from November 2018, 40 lives have been lost in the Visvesvaraya Canal. On November 24, 2018, 30 people died in a bus accident at Kanakanamaradi.

Five people died after two cars plunged into the canal in July this year.

On July 27, 2023, one person died after a car plunged into the canal at Tibbanahalli. Two days later, four people met a watery grave after their car fell into the canal near Gamanahalli in Srirangapatna taluk.

All the accidents occurred due to the absence of guard rails and unscientific bends in the road, leading to drivers losing control. Every time, only after an accident, guard rails have been put up.