Illegal mining turns tragic? Worker washed away after boat capsizes in Netravati river

Mangaluru: One person is missing after a boat capsized near Adyar-Harekala on the Netravati river under Mangaluru Rural police station limits at around 1 pm on Saturday, July 2.

The missing person has been identified as Raj (50), a native of Uttar Pradesh. Two others on the boat, identified as Montu and Nagendra Kumar Saini, swam to safety.

It is said that the Raj along with 2 others were extracting sand from the river in the boat owned by Asif and Isak when the accident took place.

Water is being let off at the new dam at Adyar-Harekala due to the heavy inflow into the Netravati river. This may have resulted in the mishap as the boat was illegally sand mining in the lower reaches of the river, sources said.

There have been allegations of illegal mining thriving in the region for some time.