Kasaragod: For four years, residents of Dherampalla village in Meenja panchayat had feared that someone would fall into the swollen Uppala river while crossing the makeshift bridge built over the remains of the old concrete structure. This monsoon, that fear came true.

Luckily for Sushmitha (22), Udyakumar Shetty, a farm worker, was nearby, checking the rapidly rising water level when he heard her fall.

Sushmitha was crossing the narrow bridge with her younger sister, Nishmitha, when she lost her footing and fell into the river Monday evening. The current quickly swept her away. By the time Shetty reached the spot, she had already gone under the water several times.

When Nishmitha told him that her sister had fallen into the river, Shetty jumped in. "I didn't stop to think. I jumped in immediately," said Shetty (38), who learnt to swim in the same river. He had to dive underwater to rescue Sushmitha. "I had to swim down a little to get her. Somehow, I managed to catch hold of her top. I held on to it and swam to the riverside," he said.

Sushmitha, who does not know how to swim, had swallowed some water and was taken to a hospital in Kasaragod. "She is fine now," said Shetty.

Nishmitha, a second-year pre-university course (PUC) student studying in Puttur in Dakshina Kannada, lost her college bag with a tablet and two mobile phones in the incident.

As it was raining, Sushmitha went to pick Nishmitha from the bus stop at Jodkallu, 600 metres from her house at Dherampalla and across the Uppala river. While returning, Sushmitha walked behind holding the younger sister's college bag. "When she reached the middle of the bridge, she felt dizzy and lost her footing," said Shetty.

Four years ago, the concrete bridge connecting Dherampalla in Meenja panchayat with Jodkallu in Mangalpady panchayat was washed away. Residents built a makeshift crossing in its place. Around 100 people, including children and elderly residents, use it every day, residents said. But as the government failed to heed their repeated requests to rebuild the bridge, the temporary crossing has become the permanent link between the two sides.

The makeshift crossing is little more than bundles of four areca-palm trunks lashed together and laid across the gaps between the remains of the old concrete structure. A rope is stretched across the river for people to hold on to as they precariously balance on the narrow, uneven trunks. "We have to lay new areca-palm trunks every year. We did it again this year because no one listens to our requests," Shetty said.

Residents of Dherampalla, a remote village, have to reach Jodkallu Junction and catch buses to Puttur, Uppala, Manjeshwar and Mangaluru for education and work. "When the bridge collapsed, we submitted petitions and the issue was covered in the news. Officials came, saw everything and left. But no action has been taken," Shetty said.

BJP Kasaragod district president M L Ashwini, who visited the site and met Sushmitha and Shetty, said she had submitted a representation seeking the bridge's reconstruction in 2022, when she was a member of Manjeshwar Block Panchayat. "Then the bridge was on the verge of collapse," she said.

During the Assembly election, this bridge was a demand of the people of Meenja. "But today, when the young woman almost drowned, neither the MLA nor the MP turned up," Ashwini said. "If they don't use the bridge, they will have to walk several kilometres to reach Jodkallu," she said.

After the incident, Ashwini submitted another memorandum to Collector Arjun Pandian demanding the immediate reconstruction of the bridge.