A lake marred by trash

The areas around Agara Lake in HSR Layout have turned out to be a garbage dump. Attempts have been made by the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) to clean the storm water drain running beside the lake.

But the silt and plastic removed from the drain has been dumped onto the side of the drain which invariably overflows onto the road.

The BBMP has made no extra efforts to clear the waste that is dumped near the lake and people have also added to the mess by throwing waste. This now serves as a perfect spot for rats and mosquitoes.  ‘Metrolife’ interacted with the residents there to understand the problems they face and asked authorities what they are doing to revive the lake, clear the storm water drain and remove the garbage around the lake.

Those who live in the vicinity say that they have seen the lake in all its glory but now it is poorly maintained. V Durgaprasad, a businessman in HSR Layout, explains, “I go for a jog around the lake every morning. Not only are there heaps of garbage beside the lake but the water level in the lake seems to have reduced. The lake used to attract a lot of birds, including migratory birds. Even that has stopped now,” he states. Shiva, a shopkeeper just opposite the lake, says, “The stench is unbearable with people dumping garbage almost on a regular basis. The authorities don’t clean it but only claim to do their job.”

M Lakshminarayana, Commissioner, BBMP informs that there is a proposal to set up a sewage treatment plant. “There was a proposal by the Bangalore Water Supply And Sewerage Board (BWSSB) to install a treatment sewage plant so that the water from the storm water drain could be treated, purified and let out into the lake which at the moment doesn’t have as much water as it should have,” he says.

He adds, “What we have done is to increase the height of the bund around the storm water drain so that when it rains, the sewage water doesn’t spill into the lake. Also, it is proposed that water from the apartments around the lake could be treated and let into the lake. Most of these apartment complexes consume a lot of water and have treatment plants where the water can be treated and reused.”

Unaware of the waste and silt cleared from the storm water drain near Agara lake and dumped on the roadside, chief engineer, BBMP Ananthaswamy says, “I will get it cleared at the earliest. The BBMP has 63 storm water drains under the BBMP and we do the silting process on a regular basis. The storm water drains around Bommanahalli, Ulsoor and Arekere lake have been maintained and we have taken up a lot of work around Agara Lake as well.”

The officials with the BWSSB don’t have a different story to narrate. A senior official with BWSSB says, “There is a proposal to set up a sewage treatment plant but there is a lot of opposition from the residents in the locality. We are trying to sort that out. We intend to get the sewage water treated and then let it out into the lake.”

Shivanna CK, CEO, Lake Development Authority, informs that the contract for installing a sewage treatment plant has been handed over to a private agency. “The lake has several problems, including encroachment of a part of its land. We want to make this a model lake complete with all amenities.

The preliminary work has started. We will get the inputs from the agency that has conducted a survey of the lake before starting work for the sewage plant. This will be handed over to the government for its approval,” states Shivanna.