5 months ago
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Rejuvenation efforts astatine Madiwala Lake is nearing completion, nevertheless it looks similar they are restricted to beautifying the waterbody similar gathering walkways, a park, and gazebo, etc., alternatively than desilting it.
The bund was breached successful 2016 which led to flooding, indicating simplification successful its h2o retention capacity, making desilting each the much important. However, the connection to desilt the lake, drafted past year, has been gathering dust.
The lake, spanning 276 acres, according to the K.B. Koliwada report, connects much than six lakes successful the confederate and southeastern parts of the city. The water was handed implicit to the BBMP successful 2023 from the Forest Department, and it was past desilted astir 18 years ago.
A elder serviceman from the South City Corporation confirmed that the works presently nether mode are constricted to the improvement of walkways, bridges, a park, and gazebos. There is nary bid to statesman desilting.
The Hindu learnt that the BBMP’s Lakes Division had drafted a connection for desilting, estimated to outgo astir ₹35 crore. However, the connection has remained arsenic it is, and nary further discussions person been held. Calls and messages to South City Commissioner K.N. Ramesh to question an update connected the connection went unanswered.
Need for desilting
V. Ramprasad of Friends of Lakes pointed retired that lakes chiefly service the intent of flood mitigation and groundwater recharge, but implicit time, civic bodies person focused much connected beautification and turning them into recreational hotspots alternatively than addressing their halfway functions.
“Despite commercialized sportfishing activities spoiling the lake’s wellness owed to contractors’ greedy practices, they are allowed successful galore lakes. On the different hand, lakes person not been desilted for decades. This selective absorption volition lone summation flooding and deteriorate groundwater levels,” helium told The Hindu.
In the lawsuit of the Madiwala Lake, desilting is indispensable to summation its water-holding capacity, arsenic areas astir the water specified arsenic BTM Layout, Tavarekere, and Madiwala are prone to flooding.
In addition, storm-water drain lines from Puttenahalli Lake, Sarakki Lake, Arekere Lake, and Hulimave Lake converge astatine Madiwala Lake and past travel to Agara Lake via Kodichikkanahalli and Silk Board, forming the K-209 line, according to a National Green Tribunal document. The web highlights the important relation the Madiwala Lake plays.
During the past monsoon, insignificant flooding was witnessed successful BTM Layout and Tavarekere, indicating the anticipation of large-scale overflow successful the lawsuit of dense rainfall.
Mr. Ramprasad noted that if the water is not desilted and the storm-water drain lines are not strengthened, it could extremity successful a full-fledged crisis.
It whitethorn beryllium recalled that the water had earlier breached its bund successful 2016 and flooded the surrounding areas, disrupting mean life. Since then, the water has undergone respective upgrades and was adjacent utilized for boating activities. However, it subsequently ran into a slew of problems, including the merchandise of drain h2o into it and its usage arsenic a waste-dumping site.
An technologist from the South City Corporation admitted that desilting is necessary, arsenic the water has been filled with garbage, vessels, and heaps of junk. “Last year, erstwhile we deployed a weed-removal machine, it excavated a refrigerator and different kinds of waste. This is simply a motion that we should desilt it soon,” the serviceman added.
Currently, the South City Corporation is nearing the completion of beautification works and is aiming to conscionable the March-end deadline. The GBA has besides deployed a caller instrumentality to region weeds, a process expected to instrumentality 2 to 3 months fixed the grade of weed growth, which is simply a effect of untreated sewage being fto into the lake.
