Linking Mangalureans to their rivers Premium

Mangaluru to get waterfronts, jetties, bridges, promenades, open-air theatres, water sports park, biodiversity park, walkways, ferry points, clock tower, parking lot, toilet block, eat street, Mangalore Frame, beach front, native species garden, stepped pavilion plaza, amphitheatre, viewing arena, maritime history feature wall to re-engage citizens with varied water-related experiences & connect city to river & sea. #SmartCity #Mangaluru #Waterfronts #Jetties #Bridges #Promenades #OpenAirTheatre #WaterSportsPark #BiodiversityPark #Walkways #FerryPoints #ClockTower #ParkingLot #ToiletBlock #EatStreet #MangaloreFrame #BeachFront #NativeSpeciesGarden #SteppedPavilionPlaza #Amphitheatre #ViewingArena #MaritimeHistoryFeatureWall

Though Mangaluru is endowed with not one, but two rivers — Netravathi and Phalguni (Gurupura) — many Mangalureans themselves do not visit their banks often. At the same time, residents frequently complain about the lack of socialising places in the city, with the beaches for which Mangaluru is famous being slightly away.

The primary reason for people remaining aloof from the rivers has been the lack of access to riverfronts — no proper connecting roads, no ghats and so on. The ferry service that could have connected these rivers with people, too has vanished with the construction of bridges for vehicular movement.

Mangaluru, compared to other similarly situated regions in coastal Karnataka, has not been able to attract tourists either by showcasing its rich waterfronts for lack of any development.

In contrast, neighbouring Udupi has leapfrogged in tourism infrastructure development, particularly on the waterfronts, by developing Malpe, Kaup, Kundapura-Kodi and Byndoor beaches. Many boathouses, too, have been operating in the river backwaters, whereas Mangaluru has none. Honnavar in Uttara Kannada has a beautiful Mangrove Walk in the backwaters of Sharavathi, besides the developed Kasarakod beach. Karwar has exploited the Kali River to the maximum for tourism purposes.

Though successive district administrations of Dakshina Kannada had attempted to exploit the waterfronts around Mangaluru, they did not materialise. With Mangaluru getting selected for the Smart City Project, plans were revived, and new ideas were added for the optimum utilisation of the waterfronts.

The present scenario of the riverbanks abutting the city is no welcoming sight, with a majority of the land belonging to the Ports Department that has leased them out to ancillary activities, including boat building and repair yards, fishnet repair yards, tile factories, etc. An ordinary person does not venture to riverfronts other than for angling.

The Mangaluru Smart City Ltd. (MSCL), therefore, has developed a comprehensive plan to develop the waterfront around Mangaluru not only for the benefit of the residents but also to offer it to visitors. The development would also serve other purposes — to prevent riverbed encroachment, illegal activities, etc. The presence of people, too, would deter such unauthorised activities, according to MSCL’s General Manager Arunprabha.