'Only encroached buildings will be razed'

 Gopalaiah clarified that the houses constructed on the Kamalanagar lakebed would not be demolished.

“Residents should not panic at the rumours. Only encroached buildings that have come up on the stormwater drains would be cleared,” he said.

With regards to raising the high tension wire at Saraswathinagar, Gopalaiah said the permission of Energy Minister D K Shivakumar was also sought for the task.

However, a few residents threatened to commit suicide, if the height of the wire was raised. Hence, we had to halt the task, he said.