Two years after Rs 4-crore rejuvenation, Bengaluru's Gangashetty lake faces pollution, fish deaths

Time of India

21 hours ago

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Bengaluru: Gangashetty lake in KR Pura is facing severe distress with multiple fishkills being reported barely two years after its Rs 4-crore rejuvenation in 2023.
Both locals and BBMP officials attribute fishkills reported since July 31 to untreated sewage flowing into the lake through a stormwater drain.
Lake activist Raghavendra Pachhapur, who has been raising the alarm on social media, blamed the crisis on poor planning of rejuvenation projects.
He said lakes are naturally situated at lower altitudes, allowing rainwater from surrounding areas to flow in, maintaining water quality. "Instead, BBMP connects lakes to polluted rajakaluves carrying sewage, plastic, and waste throughout the year. Without a steady inflow of clean rainwater, lake ecology collapses," he said.
BBMP lake division also admitted that the inflow system is a major concern at Gangashetty lake.
BBMP officials have identified two problems with the connected rajakaluve — an encroachment that has narrowed the drain's outlet and a faulty inlet that allows sewage to enter during rains. A diversion channel was built to separate sewage from rainwater, but it fails during heavy rainfall. According to a BBMP engineer, the sewage volume in the rajakaluve near Gangashetty increased from 5-10 million litres per day (MLD) to 40-50 MLD.
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The engineer blames BWSSB for permitting untreated sewage into stormwater drains, which are meant only for rainwater. The problem has been compounded by new buildings and apartments discharging sewage directly into the drain instead of connecting to the underground drainage network.
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Conflict of interest
The engineer calls it a conflict of interest. "BWSSB manages the underground drainage network but allows sewage to flow into rajakaluves, while BBMP is left to handle the resulting lake pollution," said the engineer.
For residents like Srinivas of Chinnagara Layout, which is just 50m from the lake, the decline is heartbreaking. Part of a 25-member volunteer team that maintains greenery around the lake, he said they have found seven or eight dead fish in a single morning, alongside dead birds.
"The sewage-rainwater mix brings chemicals, plastic, and waste that suffocate aquatic life. There are snakes, birds, and different kinds of fish… all of them are getting affected. Around the lake, we have planted saplings, and they are bearing fruits. We volunteers water them… we are doing the best we can in our capacity to protect our lake. But neither BBMP nor BWSSB is doing anything to protect what is in their capacity," Srinivas said.
Locals are clear about the solution: restore clean rainwater inflow and completely block the entry of sewage.
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