Mud removed illegally from Mavallipura lakebed to make bricks, say locals

Villagers of Hesaraghatta Hobli near Mavallipura have alleged that some people are removing mud from Mavallipura lake to make bricks.

They say almost 10 to 12 truckloads of mud is removed from the lakebed every day. "Survey number 116 and 68 are designated as lake area," said a resident who does not like to be named.

"In 2014, the gram panchayat authorised a man called Dhanraj to take about three feet of mud from the lakebed and dump it on the farmland, but the approval was withdrawn when he began digging beyond three feet," the resident said. Senior researcher at Department of Mines and Geology Vijaya said no permission had been given to dig up the lakebed.

"We will complain to the gram panchayat regarding this as many people are involved in removing the mud from the lakebed illegally without calling any tenders," Vijaya said.

Shivakote gram panchayat development officer Shailaja said the panchayat has decided to stop people from digging up the lakebed.

Advocate Manjunath said: "There is an order from the High Court last year stating that the mud should not be removed from lakebed illegally."