The search for Arjun, a native of Kozhikode who went missing in a landslide in Shirur, Karnataka on July 16, entered its ninth day on Wednesday, July 24. The Indian Navy and disaster management teams have intensified their efforts, employing advanced technologies like sonar and radar to scan the affected area. Retired army officer M Indrabalan has also joined the team with sophisticated surveillance equipment to aid in the search.
The search operation, resuming in the Gangavali River, is focusing on areas where sonar and radar scans have detected signals indicating metal fragments. A state-of-the-art radio frequency scanner, previously used in the Sikkim flood to locate 17 bodies and 36 vehicles, will now be deployed in Shirur. Manufactured by a private Uttar Pradesh-based company for military purposes, this technology can probe depths up to 90 meters using a drone-attached scanner. Its ability to accurately pinpoint underground objects, including human remains, offers new hope in finding Arjun and two others still missing after the landslide.
Significant progress has been made by the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), Army, Navy, Kerala Rapid Response Team (KRT), and other experts in clearing soil from the Shirur site and searching the Gangavali River. Advanced equipment, such as radar from Mangaluru and Bengaluru, Army radar, and Navy sonar, is being utilized, along with heavy machinery like a Hitachi excavator from Hubli, which is clearing soil up to 60 feet deep. Despite these efforts, no trace of Arjun’s lorry has been found after clearing 70-80% of the soil at the hill site, shifting the focus of the search to the river.
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