Shiradi

Shiradi is a village on NH-48 (NH-75 at present) which runs from Mangalore to Bangalore. The village is situated in Puttur taluk of Dakshina Kannada district. The nearest town is Nelyadi which is at a distance of approximately 15 km. The ghat section of Western ghats through which NH-48 passes is called Shiradi Ghat.Once you reach Shiradi, you need to travel a few hundred meters where you reach a bridge taking right there you need to start trekking to reach the spot "Ombathhu Gudda". Gundya, Kempuhole, Maranahalli, Kadamane tea estate, Heggadde, Donigal and Manjarabad Fort are the places located on the Shiradi Ghat. Aramane Betta, Venkatagiri, Mugilagiri, Are Betta and Yedakumeri are the popular trekking spots.Shiradi Ghat RoadThe stretch of the National Highway passing through the Shiradi Ghat is poorly maintained according to sources. It was upgraded by the National Highways Authority of India at a cost of 26 crore. Elephants have also been sighted on the road. In 2012, the Government of Karnataka sought help from the Japanese government to bore a tunnel through the ghat. Later, the State Government released money to keep the road motorable during rains.Shiradi Ghat will have a tunnel bypass road, the construction project will begin before December 2016. The proposed tunnel bypass road is expected to be 29 km and provides seamless travel through the ghat stretch with 6 tunnels and 10 bridges. The new project costing Rs. 12,000 crore would be executed with financial assistance from the Japan International Co-operation Agency (JICA).