Landslide in Montepadavu: Woman dead, mother, two children trapped under debris
Montepadavu: A tragic landslide triggered by heavy rains struck early Friday morning around 4:00 AM in Montepadavu, a village in Manjanady, Dakshina Kannada district. The incident occurred at the residence of Kanthappa Poojary in Montepadavu's Hitthilu Kodi. The landslide flattened the entire house, resulting in the death of one woman and trapping three others under the debris.
The deceased has been identified as Prema (58), wife of Kanthappa Poojary. Those trapped under the rubble include Ashwini, wife of Kanthappa's son Seetharam, and her two young children aged 3 and 2. Both Kanthappa and Seetharam were rescued, though Kanthappa sustained serious leg injuries and has been admitted to a hospital.
Rescue teams reported hearing the cries of one of the children and faint communication from Ashwini under the debris, raising hopes that the trapped victims may still be alive.
The rescue operation has been hindered by the complete collapse of the house and the lack of proper access routes to the site. Continuous rain has also posed a significant challenge.
Emergency response teams including personnel from the NDRF, SDRF, fire services, and police are on-site conducting intense rescue efforts. Local officials including ADC Santosh, Tehsildar Puttaraju, DCP Siddharth Goyal, and Disaster Management Officer Vijay are supervising the operations. Also present at the location are local panchayat leaders and prominent residents.
Rescue efforts are ongoing, with authorities and volunteers striving to save the trapped mother and her children.
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Bengaluru: Four arrested for housebreaking, threats, extortion; fake PSI among accused
Bengaluru: Vidyaranyapura police have arrested four persons, including a man posing as a Police Sub-Inspector (PSI), for allegedly breaking into a house, threatening the occupants, and extorting money while wearing police uniforms.
The arrested accused have been identified as Mallikarjuna, Pramod, Vinay, and Hrithik.
Police said the accused had hatched a plan to pose as police personnel, conduct fake raids, and extort money from residents by intimidation.
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According to the police, Mallikarjuna had failed the PSI examination twice and later falsely projected himself as a PSI. He allegedly conducted photo shoots in his hometown, Siraguppa, wearing a police uniform, baton, cap, and shoes, claiming to be serving as a PSI in Bengaluru.
On December 7, the four accused allegedly went to the house of Naveen in the Vidyaranyapura limits, threatened him with a stick and an iron rod, and claimed they had information that he was selling ganja. Under the pretext of searching, they allegedly extorted ₹87,000 through bank transfer, ₹53,000 in cash kept in the house, and ₹2,000 from his wallet.
Following Naveen’s complaint, Vidyaranyapura police registered a case and launched an operation, leading to the arrest of all four accused. Police have seized ₹45,000 in cash and the car used to commit the crime.
Further investigation is underway.
