BANGALORE: Three days after several dead fish were spotted in Mallathahalli lake in the city, conditions here have deteriorated. The decaying fish in the BBMP-owned lake is hindering normal life here, as many in the water-scarce area depend on the lake for their needs. When Expresso contacted Thimmappa, Junior Engineer (BBMP) at Nagarbhavi, he said that the contractor who was leased the area for aquaculture has been instructed to remove the fish in the lake. “We have directed the Department of Fisheries to ensure that there is no contamination,” he said.When Expresso visited the area, we found that the fish have not been removed yet. Babu, the contractor who has taken the lake on lease, said that the cleaning process is still going on. HS Veerappa Gowda, Director of Fisheries and CS Vedant, CEO of the Lake Development Authority were not even aware of the incident. “The fish might have died due to sewage entering the lake, hence it is the responsibility of the Pollution Control Board,” Vedant said. MS Goudar, Member Secretary of the Karnataka State Pollution Control Board (KSPCB), said that the situation was not serious as the scale of the contamination was small. The reason for the fish deaths has not bee confirmed yet.
A report on the incident was supposed to be submitted by the BBMP on Monday, but that has not been done yet. Thimmappa said that it would be submitted on Tuesday.