BBMP, BDA to take over reins to maintain lakes

BBMP, BDA to take over reins to maintain lakes
TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Bangalore: Lakes in Bangalore will now get a new guardian — the BBMP and BDA. The message was clear on Monday after chief minister H D Kumaraswamy and district in-charge minister R Ashok, who were in Puttenahalli to inaugurate the newly-laid main road, expressed their discontent over the upkeep of lakes by the Lake Development Authority (LDA). “The government has spent Rs 3 crore on upgrading Puttenahalli Lake, while crores have been spent on others too. But it has made little difference to the dying lakes,’’ said Kumaraswamy. Earlier, Ashok urged the chief minister to hand over the lakes to the BBMP and the BDA. “We need to rejuvenate the lakes to ensure better health for the city and people. Both BDA and BBMP have enough expertise and manpower to check encroachments and maintain these lakes.’’
The 9-km Puttenahalli Road has been remodelled by the BDA at a cost of Rs 20 crore and renamed Sir M Visvesvaraiah Road. All these years, the road was in shambles and the situation could get worse during rains. This new radial road connects South Bangalore to Outer Ring Road, national highway and Bannerghatta Road. It provides good connectivity to areas along JP Nagar 5th Phase (15th cross) to Kanakapura Road via Konanakunte. Land auctions: Reacting to criticism over auctioning of government land, Kumaraswamy sought to know why people had been opposing land auction. “What is the guarantee that subsequent governments will not misuse the land freed of encroachments by us? We never compromised on the land price to appease any investor. On the contrary, we called for a reauction and want to mortgage land if it fails to fetch good money. The BDA has been given 500 acres to develop 50,000 sites and 2 lakh houses for the poor,’’ he added.