Bengaluru: The 25-foot fence that serves as a buffer between two famously polluted lakes - Bellandur and Varthur - and the people who live around them, proved no match for the downpour of the last few days. Much to the dismay of residents, the toxic foam has burst its paltry barricades, entering residential complexes and engulfing passing vehicles. Even more troubling, however, is the fact that it has begun to travel down the valley towards other lakes, including Kaggadasarapura Kere, which have also begun to froth. Irate residents say they clean it themselves each day as the government has proved completely unresponsive.
“The blatant negligence by the KSPCB and Lake Development Authority has led us to this situation,” said Sridhar Pabbisetty, CEO Namma Bengaluru Foundation. The consequences of this pollution are both immediate and far-reaching - apartments have been forced to abandon their swimming pools and playgrounds after foam entered the buildings too. Raw sewage from these apartment complexes also flows unabated into these ill-fated lakes, worsening their plight even further.
Fence fails to stop the frothing!
The heavy downpour of the last few days in the city has made lives of people living near the Bellandur and Varthur lakes miserable as even the 25 ft high fence erected around them has not been able to stop their froth from spilling out on to the streets, entering residential complexes and engulfing passing vehicles.
“The toxic foam irritates the skin and causes rashes. It makes the ground slippery and people of one of the apartments have stopped using their swimming pool after the foam entered it and the playground,” said Mr Nagesh, a water expert, who lives near Bellandur lake.
Things are no better at Kaggadasapura lake, which is also frothing foam like never before. Many here complain that the government has done nothing to help the people trying to clean the lake. Around 30 to 40 local residents clean it every day, they reveal.
“You can hardly see the water as it is entirely covered with hyacinth. It badly needs de-weeding. Moreover, although raw sewage is entering the lake from nearby residential complexes, the BWSSB is doing little to stop it although it is its responsibility to make sure that only treated water enters it," protested Mr Swarit Agarwal, a techie and a nearby resident. Others complain that the local corporator and MLA are abusive if approached for help.
Toxic froth blown by the wind enters nearby houses at Bellandur in Bengaluru on Thursday. (Photo: R. Samuel)
Sympathising with the plight of the people living near these polluted lakes, Sridhar Pabbisetty, CEO Namma Bengaluru Foundation, says it is unfortunate that the Silicon Valley of India is not able to protect its water bodies from industrial pollution. “The blatant negligence by the KSPCB and Lake Development Authority has led us to this situation,” he observed. Mr Mahesh Kashyap, consultant with Centre for Sustainable Development, recalls that a proposal was given by the Rajiv Gandhi Institute of Chest Diseases (RGICD) to the KSPCB to conduct research on the pollution causing respiratory diseases among people around the Varthur Lake and come out with preventive measures. “But although a meeting was held with the chairman and the senior officers on this issue, nothing has been heard of since,” he deplored.
