Mangaluru (The Hindu): Property prices go up; tourism expected to get a boost. Standing silently amid the lush green cover facilitated by the backwaters of the Nandini (Pavanje), the new bridge at Kadike village has virtually become a game changer for the residents of surrounding villages, particularly those in Sasihithlu village that boasts of having a verdant and serene beach at the confluence of the Shambhavi and the Nandini (Pavanje) rivers with the Arabian Sea.

In the absence of the new bridge, residents of Sasihithlu could reach National Highway 66 at Mukka by traversing a distance of about 6 km. However, the bridge has brought them closer to NH 66 as they can reach Haleyangadi by traversing about 1.5 km.

Sudarshan, a resident of Kadike village, that is on the other side of the bridge, who was busy angling in the Nandini standing on the new bridge, told The Hindu that the bridge has brought a new life for the residents of Sasihithlu. “They are closer to the mainstream now,” he said.

Property value

Besides reducing the distance, the bridge has helped property value in the vicinity go up, said Prashanth and Ronald, residents of Sasihithlu, who too were angling on the bridge. The land price per cent has increased from just Rs. 8,000 to about Rs. 60,000 in the hinterland and from about Rs. 75,000 to Rs. 3 lakh on the beach-side, they said. Pointing at a five acre-plot on Sasihithlu-side, they said it was bought at Rs. 8,500 a cent just a year ago by a prominent hotelier in Mangaluru.

Boost to tourism

It is not just residents who got benefited from the bridge; tourists who visit the now famous Sasihithlu Beach too have got an alternative route, said Chandru, another resident of Sasihithlu. While one has to travel amid the pungent smell emanated by a few sea-food factories on the Sasihithlu Road, no such inconvenience is there on the new road. Instead, one can get treated to the lush nature on the route, he said.

Inauguration soon

The former Minister and Moodabidri MLA K. Abhayachandra Jain, in whose constituency the area falls, said that he had dreamt of the bridge ever since he got elected. The bridge was constructed at cost of about Rs. 7 crore.

He is waiting for date from Public Works Minister H.C. Mahadevappa for its formal inauguration next month even as Mr. Jain said that the bridge was thrown open to the public during the surfing event at Sasihithlu. The approach roads, which are yet to be asphalted, would be done in a matter of few days, he said.

Mr. Jain also said that there are plans to strengthen the road on the Sasihithlu-side. He is expecting about Rs. 4 crore funding from the Centre’s tsunami relief works and the road would be concreted wherever necessary.