Silt trap water polluting Lalbagh lake

Silt trap water polluting Lalbagh lake
New Indian Express

BANGALORE: A silt trap constructed by the BWSSB to keep the Lalbagh lake clean has now become a threat to the lake.

Dirty water from the silt trap situated in the wetland of the South Gate, enters into the lake, posing a great danger to the fish.

Officials say the BWSSB has spent almost Rs 70 lakhs to lay a pipeline to divert the dirty water to the main gate.

But the pipeline cannot take the amount of water from the silt trap and hence it overflows into the lake. The open drain water and the sewage from the South end, Jayanagar I and II Blocks, also gets accumulated in the silt trap.

But the problem seems to stem from the clogging of the silt trap because all kind of litter is thrown into the open drains.

The Chairman of the Mysore Horticulture Society Vasant Kumar said the BDA should cover these drains with cement slabs.

Kumar added that a wall had been constructed to obstruct the water of the silt trap going into the clean lake. A portion of the wall has collapsed recently and needs to be repaired.

“The entire lake is getting polluted and this is also affecting aquatic life. The silt trap has become a breeding ground for mosquitoes and the place stinks because of the dirty water accumulated here,” an official said.

The lake had been desilted at a cost of Rs 3.5 crores. Kumar said they had written letters to the Chairman and the Commissioner of BWSSB.

Recently, engineers had visited the place and have decided to repair the wall on the cessation of rains. According to the Chief Engineer Venkat Raju the pipeline is not able to take the load when it rains heavily, leading to the flow of sewage water into the lake.

“The engineers are trying to identify the problem and planning to change the pipeline,” he added.