Boys try to dive into Bellandur lake, caught

Alert lake marshals stopped a group of six boys from taking a deadly plunge in Bellandur lake.

The boys aged between 13 and 15 years, from Ambedkar Nagar Slum, were trying to dive into the polluted water body for a swim. They were stopped and caught by the lake marshals who were patrolling the area. The incident occurred around 1 pm. The boys studying in government schools in the vicinity had just returned from school and had decided to relax near the lake.

“We saw them when they were going to jump into the lake. At first, we shouted out and stopped them. They got scared. They were trying to jump into the lake without any safety gear and just in their underpants. On speaking to them we learnt that they wanted to swim in the lake just like their grandparents. We left them with a warning,” said a marshal.

According to the BDA officials and marshals, this is the first such incident at Bellandur lake. Normally, people go to the lake bed to fish or to cut grass, but not to take a swim because they are aware that the water is polluted.

“This part of the lake is not fenced. There is a kilometre gap. We are waiting to rehabilitate the slum dwellers before taking up the fencing,” said Shivananda, BDA engineer, in-charge of Bellandur lake.