Lakes won't breach this monsoon, says BBMP

For those living by the lakeside in Bengaluru, the monsoon is a worry. The risk of flooding or even a breach cannot be ruled out. Surprisingly this year, the BBMP has said no lake is expected to breach or overflow.

Last year, the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) had identified some lakes ahead of the monsoon that could pose danger to the residents. The lakes included Gubbalala Lake in Uttarahalli, Begur Lake, Vasanthapura Lake, Doddakallasandra Lake in Vasanthapura and others. These lakes reportedly had breaches due to weak embankments or had no embankment at all.

Now that the corporation is in the process of rejuvenating lakes, officials are confident that no lake will pose danger.

"There has never been an instance of a lake breach. They might have overflown if the rainfall was heavy. Most lakes do not have water now in the scorching summer. Many lakes have been desilted, creating plenty of space for water. Now, the lakes are ready to receive water," said B V Satish, chief engineer, BBMP (Lakes).

Begur Lake, Sarakki Lake, Gottigere Lake, Sadaramangala Lake, Singasandra Lake, Sarjapur Lake and Yelenahalli Lake remained dry this summer. Eighteen lakes have been deslited so far, including Chunchaghatta Lake, Somasundarapalya Lake and Benniganahalli Lake, which were desilted recently. As many as 74 lakes have been revived with 90 more in waiting. Over 30 lakes are in the process of rejuvenation.

However, BBMP officials did not rule out lakes overflowing this monsoon if the rainfall is too heavy. "We are clearing polluted stormwater drains in sensitive areas, after which the excess water will only flow into the next lake downstream," said K V Ravi, executive engineer, BBMP. "Houses are supposed to be built eight feet above the drain level. But many are built without a plan and such houses might have faced problem due to floods in the past."

Experts attribute the drying up of lakes to the destruction of inlets and groundwater depletion. "There has been rampant exploitation of lakes over the past few years. They are used to dump waste and store sewage water. As many were not desilted for years, the groundwater was completely depleted," said Ram Prasad, co-founder of Friends of Lakes, an organisation that focuses on waterbodies in the city.