Encroachment sword hangs over another lake

'Construction debris being dumped into lakebed'

The Sadaramangala lake in Bengaluru’s IT hub of Whitefield has dried up by more than half as encroachment on and dumping of construction debris into the lakebed go on unchecked.

Local residents allege that private builders are trying to push the boundary of the lake and gobble up the lakebed. And their efforts appear to have succeeded as some structures have come up in the 75-metre buffer zone of the waterbody.

Residents blame the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP), which maintains the lake, for its poor condition. A volunteer for ‘Whitefield Rising’ group recalled seeing construction activity going on in full swing in the lakebed. Despite making complaints to the civic agency, no action has been taken yet to stop the construction, the volunteer said on condition of anonymity. He feared that another waterbody in Whitefield, Rampura lake, was being eyed upon by private builders and it would also shrink fast.

Veerendra, a volunteer for ‘Save Whitefield’ group, said that encroachers were making constant efforts to violate the lake’s buffer zone that was determined by the National Green Tribunal (NGT). “No property should come up in the buffer zone. This rule is being blatantly violated,” he said.

BBMP Chief Engineer, Mahadevapura zone, Parameshwaraiah, acknowledged that residents had complained to him about fresh encroachments. He said the BBMP had permitted a puja pandal to be erected on the lakebed. “A temporary shelter is being built on the lakebed for puja. We gave the permission as the structure will be not permanent and we will demolish it once the puja concludes,” he said. “We have informed the aggrieved residents about this. We are monitoring the situation and have zero tolerance towards encroachments.”