Kaggadasapura Lake cleared of encroachment

The Bangalore district administration authorities on Saturday cleared three acres and twenty guntas of encroached land on Kaggadasapura Lake, yielding to the repeated demands by various activist groups. The demolished buildings included a property belonging to Bagmane Tech Park (BTP).

In an early morning swoop, police personnel, tahsildars and other senior revenue officers, led by Deputy Commissioner of Bangalore Urban G C Prakash, launched a crackdown against the illegal buildings built on lake bed. The drive was carried out in areas belonging to Byrasandra and Kaggadaspura villages.

One of the revenue officers claimed that BTP had acquired about twenty guntas of the lake land. Following directions from the Karnataka High Court on April 19, eviction notices were served to all builders who had encroached the land. But none of them had taken the notice seriously.

Leo Saldhanha of Environment Support Group (ESG), who had filed a PIL in this matter in the year 2008, was satisfied with the course of action.

“The High Court had given a common order in April 2012 that no building should be constructed on the lake catchment area. The State government has finally woken up to clear encroachments in the City,” he said.

Echoing Saldanha’s opinion, social activist, S R Hiremath, said: “The Bagmane Group, which has over 16 properties in the City, has been flouting norms by constructing buildings on lake beds since 2003. The Lake Development Authority (LDA) which is in charge of protecting lakes in the City, has not been performing its duties properly.”
K M Muniramaiah, proprietor of a building which was demolished on Saturday, said he had not received any notice from the officials concerned.

“This land is my ancestral property, and I had started True Bounce Tennis Academy a few years ago. A six-foot compound wall on one side of the land has been flattened. I am planning to approach the High Court in this matter and rebuild the wall,” he said.