Just Rs 3.15 cr for 40,000 lakes!

Just Rs 3.15 cr for 40,000 lakes!
By G Manjusainath, DH News Service, Bangalore:
The Karnataka Lake Development Authority (LDA) has been projected as a villain for the poor state of the lakes across Karnataka...


But its so-called failure was apparently forced upon it. Reason: The State budget had only Rs 3.15 crore for the Authority, mandated to take care of 40,000 lakes across the State. Last year’s budget was even less at Rs 2.5 crore. This should take the cake: The Authority has only four officers and six contract employees for the entire State.

As if this amount was not small enough, Rs 95 lakh from the allocation was diverted to the Forest Department to help the latter fence the lakes.

The LDA was set up in 2003 to display the government’s concern for the lakes in the State. The subsequent developments have only proved this measure to be a grand “eye-wash.” Interestingly, six years back when the government took over the beautification project of the Hebbal Lake, it spent Rs 4 crore. “Of this, Rs 55 lakh was spent on desilting the lake,” said Leo Saldana of Environment Support Group (ESG).

It is easy to guess that when Rs 4 crore was required for the beautification of a single lake how much is needed to take care of 40,000 lakes across Karnataka.

No control

Surprisingly, none of the 40,000 or odd lakes in the state are directly under the control of the LDA. “We cannot take any action against encroachments because we do not even have judicial powers,” said an officer, who was formerly associated with the LDA. He added that these loopholes have paved the way for open encroachment of the lakes. These encroachments are then turned into garbage dump yards and later turned into sites for high-rise apartments.

The whole set up of Lake Development Authority has only four officers and six employees on contract basis to take care of 40,000-odd lakes. The set up has a lone vehicle and one telephone.

What is the job of the LDA then?

“This set up is merely a facilitator to channelise funds,” said an officer with the LDA. Most of the money is going as salary to the employees, maintenance of the office, running the lone vehicle and sometimes field visits, though the LDA has no field as none of the lakes are under its control nor they have powers to act on seeing something wrong happening to the lakes viz, encroachment, garbage dump yard and apartments coming up on lake.

Now the government is considering closure of the LDA. The Minister for Excise, IT-BT and BWSSB Katta Subramanya Naidu declared to the media recently that there was no need for the LDA as it was not serving its purpose. But this would add more troubles to the government, if sources in the environment department are to be believed.

The LDA was set up in response to a PIL filed in the High Court seeking judicial intervention in saving lakes around six years ago.

The closure of the LDA may invite contempt of the court, the sources added. Summing up all these are the environmentalists, who had this rather telling punch line: “The LDA was set up for bird watching.”