BBMP takes up Vasanthapura temple tank cleaning

The citizens’ initiative finally ‘ashamed’ the Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike, who, on Saturday, undertook cleaning of Vasanthapura temple tank (kalyani).

The Palike engineers had squandered Rs 50 lakh meant for the temple tank, which Deccan Herald had exposed last year in November. A few months later, a probe by BBMP’s Technical Vigilance Cell under Commissioner substantiated the report.

Perturbed by the annoying report, some local residents demanded BBMP to restore the temple tank but to no avail.

Finally, in July, a group of residents under the banner of NGOs, Youth for Seva and SUNLIT, took up the cleaning of the tank, much to the humiliation of BBMP engineers. Yet nothing changed.

The local residents decided to clean up the tank on Sunday again and informed the BBMP engineers about their plan. Before the matter could snowball into a major controversy, BBMP engineers finally swung into action.

They appealed to residents to give up their work as the BBMP would now clean it. On Saturday, the engineers deployed a earth remover, two tractors and about 50 labourers to clean the tank.

The residents alleged that even after a day's labour, only 25 per cent of the kalyani was cleaned. They said the Palike engineers have assured them that they would clean it every Saturday under the ‘intensive cleaning drive,’ started by BBMP.

Political interference

As the work began, some local politicians arrived at the location, demanding that the BBMP stop the work, alleging that they have already ‘restored’ the tank, if not on the ground, then at least on paper with an expenditure of Rs 50 lakh.

Members of SUNLIT later issued a press note, demanding that BBMP Commissioner M Lakshminarayana release funds for the restoration and rejuvenation of the temple tank. They said that restoration is necessary before land sharks in the area encroached the tank.