Residents report froth in outlets Hosakerehalli lake

Residents monitoring the rejuvenation work at the Hosakerehalli Lake had a shock on Saturday afternoon when they noticed froth bubbling up in the outlet channel.

The foaming waterbody is the latest reminder of the rapidly deteriorating city lakes under the custody of the Bangalore Development Authority (BDA). The agency had stopped the lake’s rejuvenation work for the past two months.

“The rejuvenation work was stopped for the third time in four years,” said Lakshmikanth Reddy, a resident of Pramod Layout. “They didn’t stop the sewage water from entering the lake. The lake is still stinking. The froth from the outlet channel is a fresh worry.”

The froth is a sign that effluence continues to be present in the waterbody, Reddy pointed out. He feared that continuing negligence would turn the lake into another Bellandur or Varthur. While the residents were unclear over the presence of industries that might release effluence into the lake, they virtually gave up hope on the total rejuvenation of the waterbody, accusing BDA of wasting public money.

Several attempts were made to contact the BDA officials to get their version on the frothing, but our calls went unanswered. When DH had contacted the BDA officials earlier to find out the reasons for halting the rejuvenation work, they attributed it to bills pending before the board due to the absence of the chairman.

They assured that they had stopped the inflow of sewage and would begin the rejuvenation work shortly.