Rain brings mercury levels down in parts of Karnataka; pepper crop hit in Kodagu

Mangaluru, Jan 8: The serene beaches near Kulai Jetty under the limits of Surathkal police station turned into a scene of tragedy on Wednesday, January 8, as a group of four close friends saw their day of joy morph into heartbreak. 

Three young men lost their lives in the unforgiving waves, while one narrowly escaped death, saved by the heroic efforts of local fishermen.

The victims have been identified as: 

M. S. Manjunath (31), son of Shivlingappa, hailing from Upparigenahalli, Chitradurga district.

Shivakumar (30) from Shivamogga district.

Satyavelu (30) from JP Nagar, Bengaluru.

The sole survivor, Parameshwara (30), from Hangarga, Bidar district, now carries the weight of a harrowing ordeal and the devastating loss of his three closest friends.

These young men, all students of AMC Engineering College in Bengaluru, had embarked on a trip meant to create memories of joy and camaraderie. Driving overnight from Bengaluru, they reached Mangaluru on Wednesday morning. After breakfast at a local eatery, the group decided to visit the picturesque Kulai Jetty, seeking solace and adventure in the sea.

But their joyful outing took a tragic turn. While playing in the water, the four were caught in strong currents. Despite the swift intervention of local fishermen, only Parameshwara could be rescued in time. The lifeless bodies of Manjunath, Shivakumar, and Satyavelu were later found on the right side of the jetty, their dreams and futures cruelly cut short.

The Surathkal police, alerted to the incident, promptly arrived at the scene and began their investigation. The bodies were transported to AJ Hospital for post-mortem examinations, leaving their families and friends to grapple with the enormity of their loss.

A case has been registered at Surathkal Police Station. This incident serves as a stark reminder of the unpredictable and dangerous nature of the sea, urging visitors to prioritize safety above all else.

What was meant to be a day of joy has left a void that can never be filled, as three grieving families now face the unbearable pain of losing their loved ones.

A plane with 181 people on board crashed at South Korea's Muan airport after it veered off the runway while landing, with 177 people confirmed dead.

As per Yonhap news agency, the crash was reported in the South Jeolla province when the Jeju Air flight 2216 was returning from Thailand.

Two people - both believed to be flight crew - were rescued by authorities, which continued evacuating passengers from the Boeing 737-800's rear section. Two people are missing. 

Among the 181 on board, 175 were passengers and six were flight crew. Emergency services at the airport began operations around 9 am after the aircraft crashed into a fence after a failed belly landing attempt and erupted in flames. Visuals showed black smoke rising above the crash site.

The crash is believed to have been caused by "contact with birds, resulting in malfunctioning landing gear", coupled with adverse weather conditions. "The plane is almost completely destroyed, and identifying the dead is proving difficult. The process is taking time as we locate and recover the remains," the fire department in Muan said in a statement.

Two minutes before the crash, the pilot issued a Mayday call, Ministry of Land. It added, "It took approximately three minutes from the control tower's mention of a bird strike warning to the aircraft's attempt to land on the runway again."

When asked if the accident happened due to the runway being too short -- video shows the plane coming off the tarmac and hitting a wall -- the official said this was likely not a factor. "The runway is 2,800 meters long, and similar-sized aircraft have been operating on it without issues," they said.

Acting President Choi Sang-mok called for the mobilisation of all resources to save the passengers. "All related agencies must mobilise all available resources to save the personnel," he instructed officials in a statement.

Meanwhile, Jeju Air said it 'sincerely apologises' for the plane crash. "We at Jeju Air will do everything in our power in response to this accident. We sincerely apologise for causing concern," the airline said in a statement posted on its social media channels.

It is the first fatal accident in the history of Jeju Air, one of South Korea's largest low-cost carriers, which was set up in 2005. The aircraft involved in the crash was acquired in 2017 from Europe's low-cost carrier RyanAir.

On August 12, 2007, a Bombardier Q400 operated by Jeju Air carrying 74 passengers came off the runway due to strong winds at the southern Busan-Gimhae airport, resulting in a dozen injuries.

Second Plane Crash In A Week

Sunday's crash comes days after an Azerbaijan Airlines passenger plane crashed on Wednesday in Kazakhstan, claiming 38 lives.

Azerbaijan Airlines' Flight J2-8243 crashed and caught fire near the city of Aktau in Kazakhstan after diverting from southern Russia where Ukrainian drones were reported to be attacking several cities.

Russian President Vladimir Putin apologised to Ilham Aliyev, the president of Azerbaijan, for the "tragic incident". "It was noted in the conversation that the Azerbaijani passenger aircraft, which was travelling according to its schedule, repeatedly tried to land at Grozny airport. At that time, Grozny, Mozdok and Vladikavkaz were being attacked by Ukrainian unmanned aerial vehicles, and Russian air defence systems repelled these attacks," according to a Kremlin statement.

Karnataka’s first C Band Doppler Weather Radar (DWR) in Mangaluru, work for which was supposed to have been finished by January 15, will be postponed slightly due to some technical difficulties, said N Puviarasan, head of India Meteorological Department (IMD)’s Bengaluru centre.

“We are hoping to get it running by this month's end at least,” said Puviarasan on the sidelines of a stakeholders’ workshop organised by the IMD Bengaluru on January 4 to commemorate 150 years of IMD. The workshop was held at the premises of Karnataka State Natural Disaster Management Centre (KSNDMC) and had day-long sessions, including technical ones by Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd, Bengaluru and Department of Agro Meteorology, University of Agricultural Sciences, Bengaluru.

Puviarasan also said the IMD ran into obstacles in its bid to establish a S-band DWR in Bengaluru, due to problems in acquiring the land required. “We need 30X30 space to put up a tower and a small utility room,” said Puviarasan. According to him, IMD had originally planned to put up the radar in Nandi Hills. But, on Union Minister of State for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises and Labour & Employment Shobha Karandlaje’s request, he said they started scouting for an appropriate place in Bengaluru. On July 23, 2024 Karandlaje had posted on X: “Following my request, the IMD has greenlit the installation of a Doppler radar in the city (Bengaluru), scheduled to be operational by year-end. This is a major step towards better weather forecasting & preparedness for natural disasters."

She had also posted a letter written to her by Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) Jitendra Singh, who said the radar will have an operational range of 250 km and will be installed in Bengaluru by 2024. He also mentioned that the site for the radar installation has already been identified and the Centre had informed the state government to acquire the site. “But the site suggested by the minister is not feasible because of the elevation issues,” said Puviarsan.

According to IMD scientists, there should not be buildings higher than the radar within its range, as readings will be affected. Puviarasan said they have now identified a place within a government school in Bengaluru and are awaiting permission to establish the radar. He said usually land acquisition is a huge problem. “This time, it’s a government school. Here, we don’t even need to raise a boundary wall, as it exists already. So, we’ll see,” said the director. If this is not working out, he said IMD will go back to its initial plan and will establish the radar in Nandi Hills. Mangaluru radar, being established near Kadri, is expected to cover 250-300 km radius, putting regions prone to heavy rains during monsoons in Karnataka, like Agumbe, Hulikal, Talakaveri, Kerekatte and Bhagamandala within its range, said a IMD scientist. Earlier, in his presentation, Puviarasan had also said apart from Bengaluru and Mangaluru, one X-band DWR is coming up at Dharwad. He also said proposals have been submitted for S-band radar at Honnavara and C-band at Ballari.

Without a DWR, Karnataka has been depending on the radars in Goa, Hyderabad and Chennai for more accuracy in forecasts for thunderstorms and rainfall so far, said IMD officials. In his presentation, Director of KSNDMC, Bhoyar Harshal Narayanrao, talked about why Karnataka is vulnerable to hydro-meteorological and geological disasters. He also said 80 per cent of Karnataka is prone to drought, and that in the last 23 years (between 2001 and 2024), 16 years are drought affected. He also said maximum number of landslides leaving widespread damage and casualties have occurred in Uttara Kannada, Shivamogga, Chikkamamgaluru, Udupi, Dakshina Kannada, Kodagu, Hassan, Chamrajanagara Mysuru and Chikkaballapura. The year 2018 saw the most landslides, at 462, between 2006 and 2024. Narayanrao also said Karnataka is the only state in the south with its own disaster monitoring centre and seeing its success other states are also thinking of establishing one on the lines of KSNDMC. He said KSNDMC is also being approached by a few startups to involve Artificial Intelligence in disaster management. “We are taking a cautious approach towards the idea. We are looking into what AI can offer and will decide accordingly,” said Narayanrao.

Other presentations included an overview of IMD services by S Balachandran, head of Regional Meteorological Centre, Chennai and possible integration of climate services in support of Karnataka State Action Plan on climate change by K J Ramesh, Former Director General, IMD. Sanjeev Verma, AGM, Air Traffic Management, Airports Authority of India, Kempegowda International Airport, Bengaluru also made a presentation of how weather forecasting is integral for air traffic management.