Stop sinking borewells in City: BU Vice Chancellor

Varsity takes green initiatives to recharge ground water on campus

Addressing the media to announce the centenary celebrations of the Department of Zoology, he said, “Water table in the City has gone down considerably. Nearly, 60 per cent of the borewells are dry. Instead of sinking more borewells, the agencies should focus on replenishing the existing borewells,” said the V-C.

Nataraj, soon after taking over the charge as Mayor had issued orders to dig more borewells in each constituency to solve water crisis. The decision for drilling 336 borewells in the City was criticised by environmentalists as well as groundwater experts. The suggestion was to dig 12 borewells in each constituency, four of which was to be dug by BBMP and the remaining by BWSSB. 

The Vice-Chancellor pointed out that borewells could do more harm than good as water from borewells is not fit to be consumed.

BU initiative
The Vice-Chancellor enlisted the tree planting initiatives like ‘Laksha Vriksha E Varsha’ which had replenished the water level of Jnana Bharathi campus. “As a part of the initiative, we have planted nearly 40,000 saplings. A recent study conducted in the campus indicates that the water level has gone up by five feet. If we plant one lakh saplings, water level might go up by 11 feet not only in the campus but also in the neighbouring areas,” he added.

He also informed that the university would construct more check dams to conserve rain water. “We are planning to construct 20 more check dams to preserve rain water. The university has already built 12,” he said. 

Centenary celebrations
The University’s Zoology Department, as part of its centenary celebrations, is organising an international conference on environmental pollution, water conservation and health, from July 29-31.

The conference is being attended by as many as 900 delegates from 22 states in India and 11 countries.

New courses
The Zoology department has also announced starting of three new post graduate diploma courses on the occasion. The one-year diploma courses would be offered from the next academic year.

"Students can apply for diploma courses in Water conservation and Management, Eco-technology and apiculture from the next academic year. Post graduates of environmental science, microbiology and zoology are eligible for these courses. It is the first time that we are offering these diplomas,” said Ramachandra Mohan, professor and chairperson of zoology department.
A special postal cover marking the 100 years of the department would also be released, said Ramachandra Mohan.

Erring colleges
Sources in Bangalore University  said that the list of eleven erring colleges might be officially declared tomorrow.
On Monday, the university's academic council imposed a fine of Rs 5 lakh on these colleges.
DH News Service