Nallurahalli Lake, spread over 48 acres and located near Whitefield, is dying a slow death. The water body and its vicinity have turned into a dumping ground for construction debris and medical waste, prompting locals, who grew up swimming in the lake, to helm efforts to rejuvenate it.
Srinivas N, a resident from the lake¡¯s neighbourhood, said the water body is suffering due to Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike¡¯s (BBMP) apathy. The civic body, he says, has failed in its responsibility towards maintaining the lake.
¡°Medical waste from a private hospital is being dumped in the lake. But no one is interested in resolving the issue,¡± Srinivas rued. While the lakebed is filled with debris, sewage too is being let into it.
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The lake¡¯s water is turbid and bubbling constantly, indicating excessive methane generation from the sludge underneath.
Villagers alleged that BBMP trucks too dump garbage in the lake. ¡°Meat waste, medical waste, and plastic are also being dumped here,¡± they said.
According to Nalluralli villagers, the Britishers got the lake built by French prisoners of war. The lake was initially in the hands of BDA and was later transferred to the Lake Development Authority. It is now under BBMP.
Earlier, during monsoon, locals would often swim in the lake and depend on it for their livelihood. ¡°I learnt swimming here. I would also collect clay from the lake to make toys,¡± recalled Srinivas.
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Over 300 trees, standing on the lake bund with support of tree guards, are struggling to survive. Rakesh Nagesh, another villager, said the trees are suffering because of the toxic debris.
The government has floated a tender to develop Nalluralli Lake along with Begur and Basavanapura lakes at a cost of Rs 1,700 lakh.
Jagannath Rao, deputy conservator of forests and lakes, said the tender has been called for fencing the lake and sewage removal. ¡°If the lake needs to be completely rejuvenated then I suggest CSR funds be mobilised,¡± he added.
Ramprasad from Friends of Lakes said Nalluralli Lake needs to be desilted immediately if it has to survive. Villagers are planning to launch a lake vision development programme on May 12 to discuss ways to keep it alive. ¡°We want to plant at least 1,000 saplings around the lake by 2020,¡± said Srinivas.