Bellandur lake Bengaluru’s biggest septic tank: NGT panel

BENGALURU: The commission appointed by the National Green Tribunal (NGT) said that the Karnataka government and civic agencies are responsible for turning city’s biggest lake into septic tank. The commission also said that the government has failed to discharge their duty.

Criticizing the government, the committee in its report also said, “The government did not take any step against the dumping of waste and sewage to Bellandur lake. Now the lake has become city’s biggest polluted lake and there is not even one ml of clean water left in the lake.” The observations have been made by the panel after inspection of these lakes including Bellandur.

The report not only blamed waste and sewage for ruining the state of lake but huge dumping of construction and demolishing waste (C&D waste) and municipal solid waste are also responsible for the pollution in the Bellandur Lake.

In April, NGT formed the committee of three member which includes a professor from Indian Institute of Science- Bangalore, a senior scientist from Central Pollution Control Board, and the commissioner of Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike who inspected the lakes in the city.

During inspection, the panel noticed that the “Storm Water Drain outlets near the lake were discharging nothing but sewage and effluents and the same was being released into the lake”. The committee revealed that they were shocked to find the construction of road over the Varthur lake by dumping of construction and demolishing waste.

The report also states that Bellandur Lake has caught fire 12 times since the first incident on August 12, 2016.

BL Ravindra Babu, engineer member of Bengaluru Development Authority (BDA), which is the custodian of Bellandur Lake, said deweeding and work on installation of the sluice gate are on in full swing. “We will soon file our compliance report before NGT. The froth is also due to soaps and detergents that are part of the sewage entering the lake,” he added.

In April, the Karnataka government submitted report to the bench headed by Justice Jawad Rahim, chairperson, NGT and the report was disapproved by the bench and said that the report submitted by the government was “incorrect and misleading” and was bereft of the actual action taken on the ground.