Five years on, critically polluted lakes in Bengaluru's Bommasandra to get effluent treatment plant

Bengaluru: Paying the price for polluting lakes in the Jigani–Bommasandra area, the state government is finally moving ahead with setting up a Common Effluent Treatment Plant (CETP) at a cost of Rs 62.75 crore.

In June 2020, the National Green Tribunal (NGT) had imposed a penalty of Rs 15 lakh on the state government and the Bommasandra Town Municipal Council for polluting Kithiganahalli Lake, located behind Narayana Hrudayalaya hospital. In 2022, the tribunal levied another penalty of Rs 500 crore on the government over the pollution of Chandapura Lake.

Five years later, the government has received all necessary clearances for the CETP, which will be developed on a turnkey basis, including operation and maintenance for 10 years. The plant will have a capacity to treat 1.5 million litres of industrial effluent per day. The wastewater matrix includes 700 kld from engineering units, 600 kld from chemical units, and 200 kld from pharmaceutical units.

A 2022 joint committee report had found that only 206 of the 543 industries (less than 40%) in the Bommasandra–Jigani–Veerasandra clusters were sending their waste to existing treatment facilities. The report also tagged these clusters as critically polluted areas.

Officials were asked to develop a tamper-proof system, such as a closed conduit, to pump effluents safely, as transporting waste in tankers often leads to illegal discharge into drains or water bodies. The capital cost of the project was revised from Rs 44.11 crore to Rs 62.75 crore. The works, to be completed in 18 months, will involve an annual recurring cost of Rs 2.5 crore.

"The revised budget incorporates additional components such as pipeline laying and sector-wise collection of effluents. An additional Rs 38 lakh has been allocated for community and environmental improvement activities," the Karnataka Industrial Areas Development Board told the committee.

Rs 128 crore for UGD

The Karnataka Urban Water Supply and Drainage Board (KUWSDB) has taken up a Rs 128-crore project to provide underground drainage to 5,200 houses and build a wastewater treatment plant.

"The work on Kithiganahalli Lake has been completed. The KUWSDB’s UGD network project will further strengthen the measures taken to protect the lake," said Venkateshappa BR, Chief Officer of the Bommasandra Town Municipal Council.