Seven lakes breach banks, flooding homes, roads in Southeast Bengaluru

Bengaluru: Pounded by around 70 mm of rain, the city paid a heavier price than usual for the BBMP’s apathy in the face of the monsoon as eight lakes breached early Friday morning, flooding South and Southeast Bengaluru and throwing normal life out of gear.

As many as 500 houses around the Kodichikkanahalli, Hulimavu/Arakere, Begur, Subramanyapura, Yemalur, Madiwala, Hebbagodi and Bellandur lakes were inundated as they breached their bunds and fire and emergency and disaster management staff were called in to evacuate and rescue people using dinghies. Bommanhalli MLA, Satish Reddy joined them in handing out biscuits packets, milk sachets and water bottles to the marooned people.

Floods

With several areas virtually turning into islands, people were forced to stay indoors and move to higher floors. Even as apartments used pumpsets to pump out water from their basements in Kodichikkanahalli, BTM Layout, Bommasandra and other low lying areas, most techies opted to work from home as their vehicles were submerged in their basements. Children too were forced to miss school as their parents were not able to step out on the flooded streets.

Besides the flooding, the uprooting of trees and electric poles led to massive traffic jams on Old Madras Road, in KR Puram, HSL Layout, Bannerghatta Road, Bommanahalli and other areas.

Transport Minister Ramalinga Reddy, who visited the rain-hit areas along with Mayor Manjunath Reddy and BBMP Commissioner, Manjunath Prasad blamed the Forest Department for the breaching of the Kodichikkanahalli Lake. “The disaster was caused mainly because of lack of cooperation from the department and the absence of a proper drain network. A detailed project report will be prepared after inspection of the areas with Chief Secretary Arvind Jadhav on Saturday,” he said.

But the people blamed the BBMP and BWSSB for failing to clear drains and removing encroachments around the lakes for the disaster.