BENGALURU: Bengaluru's infamous froth has now reached Lakshmisagar village in Kolar district, thanks to the Koramangala-Challaghatta (KC) Valley project. The project was meant to recharge groundwater in the depleted aquifers of Kolar, but the froth being spewed out over the past two days at the discharge point near Lakshmisagar lake and further downstream has only confirmed the worst fears of villagers. The quality of water flowing into the lakes of Kolar, within the first two months of the launch of the project, has the villagers and activists worried about groundwater contamination.
They fear that seepage of heavy metals and other chemicals could enter the food chain and have catastrophic consequences. Speaking to TNIE, R Anjaneya Reddy, president of Shashvatha Neeravari Horata Samiti, Chikkaballapur, said frothing near Lakshmisagar lake was reminiscent of Bellandur and other frothing lakes of Bengaluru. It is clear the water treatment has not worked, he said.
“This is what we had feared. The region is considered to be the food bowl of Bengaluru as a large amount of vegetables go from there. Continuous discharge of such water could contaminate the scarce groundwater resources here,” he said. BWSSB, however, refuted the allegations and said water supply up to the metering point, which is its responsibility, was of a quality confirming to the state pollution control board standards. Beyond this point, the Minor Irrigation Department is responsible for the quality of water, an official said.
Shankar A, a resident of Lakshmisagar village, said that the situation has only worsened after the scheme was inaugurated. “Earlier there was just a faint odour of detergent, with little froth. Now, both odour and froth has intensified in the village lakes,” he said. Lakshmisagar has two tanks, one upstream named after the village and another downstream. Both tanks are being filled under the project. Krishnappa, a resident of Lakshmisagar, said that villagers were afraid that all crops irrigated with this water would not survive. Another farmer, Prabhakar rued that all lakes in the district, which were full of rain water this year, would now be polluted by the sewage water of Bengaluru.
A BWSSB official countered that an external agency tests the water at supply point every day. “We have records to show that the quality of water till our supply point is as per the standards in place,” he said, adding the quality of water beyond this point was the responsibility of the Minor Irrigation Department. On Monday, officials of the Minor Irrigation Department also noticed the froth and stopped pumping it, the official said. A N Yellappa Reddy, environmentalist and former Lok Adalat member said that froth - an aerosol suspension- contains both bacteria and virus and is a ‘mini chemical and biological bomb’. Though local residents may not the effect immediately, there will be a long-term impact from it, he said.
However, there are methods to tackle this which the government should adopt, he added. According to Subha Kalyan, In Charge Deputy Commissioner Kolar, a team had been deputed to disinfect water in the tanks. “Every day 130 MLD water is being supplied to Kolar through the project with three sewage treatment plants, but to increase the water level, the Bengaluru Water Supply and Sewage Board used diverted water from one more plant to raise the levels up to 200 MLD from 130 MLD without even informing the District Administration... In this connection even a letter has been forwarded to the department to inform us about any changes in future,” the officer said.