Lake needs rejuvenation posthaste

C V RAMAN NAGAR
Lake needs rejuvenation posthaste
Deccan Herald

The IT industries in C V Raman Nagar may have flourished, but the local lake has not. At least, not till date.

The deterioration process of the lake is said to have begun nearly 20 years ago, when uncontrolled sewage started flowing into it, gradually reducing the proliferating avian and aquatic life to a mere few.

“The lake is managed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) under a special agreement with the government. But this agreement does not impose any restrictions regarding the water quality,” says D S Umesh, Assistant Executive Engineer at the Lake Development Authority.

However, DRDO officials claim that efforts have been made in the last few years to improve the lake.

Says Lt Col M G Thimmaya, Estate Manager, DRDO, who is in charge of the lake, "When I took over four years ago, I took the initiative to improve the lake. Weeds proliferating in the dirty water were removed on a regular basis and a fence was built around it to prevent residents from dumping garbage."

“The stench has reduced and the surroundings are cleaner, thanks to the fence. But more can be done,” says Srinivasulu V, who is an Administrative Officer at ALSA.

While the waste coming from Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd complex is treated before being discharged, there is some sewage entering the lake even now, says Col Thimmaya. He claims that the untreated sewage is let into the lake from one of the nearby layouts.

“The Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BMP) set up a parallel drainage system some time ago, but it seems that all houses have not been connected. The BMP should keep a check on the builders and educate the residents,” he says.

When Mr S Ramesh, Assistant Executive Engineer of the Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board, was contacted, he said that he would inspect the area first and then reply. Later in the day, after inspecting Suddagunta Palya Layout, from where the sewage was said to have come, Mr Ramesh said that he had found a sewage pipe broken. He told Deccan Herald that he had instructed his officials to repair the pipe at the earliest.

Meanwhile, it is said that the agreement signed with the DRDO 60 years ago, was less rigorous than the recent ones.

The recent ones include a few water quality clauses. The Kelagina Kere in Byrasandra for instance, has been leased out for five years to Bagmane Developers, a local IT Company, with stringent water quality conditions.

Other conditions demand that the company does not make a profit out of the lake and that it bear all the expenses related to its maintenance. A similar interest is now being evinced by IT companies in the vicinity, in connection with the lake in C V Raman Nagar. Sources even explained that they have chalked out a one-year plan to rejuvenate the lake, which included the setting up of fountains to oxygenate the water and the introduction of micro-organisms. "All we need is an official approval to carry out the rejuvenation programme," sources said.

And if the permission comes through at the speed of light, well the lake may finally get a second lease of life!