BENGALURU: Residents of Medahalli, Seegehalli and Kitaganur gram panchayat in Bengaluru East City Corporation (BECC) say that despite Bengaluru Development Minister Krishna Byre Gowda warning against illegal dumping of construction debris at public places, walkers at Yele Mallappa Chetty Lake have found debris dumped for up to 50 metres on the north side of the lake.
Balaji Ragotham, a lake volunteer, said on Thursday when he, along with volunteers, arrived at the lake, he spotted mounds of debris dumped from the Kitaganur gram panchayat side, which is the northern side of the 500-acre water body. “We escalated the issue with the minor irrigation official. They are yet to attend to the issue,” he said.
Lake volunteers now fear that as the 2 km stretch of fencing is still not complete on the lake premises, there could be an increase in incidents of illegal dumping of debris and garbage at nights. “There is no security. We urge the Greater Bengaluru Authority to deploy more marshals and conduct night and early morning inspections,” said Jagan Kumar, who has petitioned the National Green Tribunal.
He also added that a large part of the lake also falls under the ambit of the panchayat, which has done very little for security or for the restoration of the lake.