3-member panel begins probe on 'illegal' roadwork at Hosakerehalli lake

The state government has appointed a three-member committee to probe the "illegal" road construction over the Hosakerehalli lake that began in March this year.

The committee, which met for the first time last week following an order from the Urban Development Department (UDD), is expected to submit its report in a month’s time.

The panel comprises KG Mahesh, director, Karnataka Engineering Research Station, Mandya; KM Shivaprakash, superintendent engineer, Visvesvaraya Jala Nigam Ltd; and TR Shivaram, chief engineer (Rtd), Public Works Department. The members kicked off their probe, by meeting the BBMP's chief engineers in the Vidhana Soudha.

The illegal work at the Hosakerehalli lake, with truckloads of soil being dumped into it, had snowballed into a major controversy ahead of the assembly elections in May. The BBMP had undertaken the “rejuvenation work” without permission from the Karnataka Tank Conservation and Development Authority (KTCDA).

In June, the government dismissed two engineers — HS Megha, executive engineer (solid waste management), and Shilpa, assistant engineer (lake) — for facilitating illegal work meant to help a private builder.

Going by the government order, the three-member committee is expected to hold a comprehensive investigation by studying the provisions of the KTCDA Act, Karnataka Land Revenue Act, 1964, and the BBMP Act, 2020. The order has instructed the BBMP to provide all support, including staff, equipment, and vehicles, to conduct the probe.

KG Mahesh, who heads the committee, told DH that he chaired a preliminary meeting with the BBMP engineers on Tuesday. “Once the standard operating procedures (SoPs) are finalised, we will start the investigation,” he said. 

Right now, though, Hosakerehalli lake is a picture of neglect. Part of the lake has shallow water, and the rest is covered by overgrown weeds. Locals say that the lake has become a den for anti-social elements.

The BBMP, which built a retaining wall on one side of the lake, has not done anything to fix Kerekodi main road, which is buried in dust, with the asphalted portion barely visible.