BENGALURU: The rising temperature has taken its toll on Madiwala lake, one of the oldest and largest water bodies in the city. With the water level in the lake receding this summer, officials have now stopped boating facilities till the city starts getting continuous rainfall.
The decision to halt boating was taken after workers at the premises observed that pedal boats were getting damaged due to reduced water levels. The lake currently has 12 boats, six of them being two-seaters while the rest are four-seater boats. Four of the boats have got damaged.
“The water level had gone down by 3 feet. The base of the boats was hitting the ground, and they were getting chipped. Each boat costs up to Rs 80,000 and we cannot afford to get them spoilt,” said Harshavardhan, Range Forest Officer (RFO), Bengaluru Urban Division.
Signboards have now been put up outside the lake premises about the temporary closure of boating. The move has, however, left many local visitors and tourists disappointed.“I am a resident of BTM Layout, and I used to frequently go boating with my friends. The lake is huge and we could see a variety of birds. But now, we have to wait,” said Naveen S.
Another visitor, Swetha Tripathi, said, “My family and I had come to Bengaluru from Mysuru as children now have summer holidays. We were surprised to see that they have stopped boating facilities. We were just allowed to spent some leisure time near the lake, which has almost dried up.”
Officials are also complaining about the loss of revenue. “A boat ride for 30 minutes was priced at Rs 50. Many tourists come here during the summer vacation. However, we will start boating when the water level increases,” said a forest official.