BENGALURU: The Bangalore Development Authority (BDA) on Wednesday filed an affidavit with the National Green Tribunal (NGT) in Chennai stating that it has not built any road through Bellandur Lake. This was in response to a complaint filed with the Tribunal by a resident, Harikrishna, accusing the authority of building a road through the lake.
A top official told The New Indian Express, “We filed an affidavit today (Wednesday) stating that BDA has never built a road through the lake. The BDA had only built a diversion canal as well as a bund in order to divert sewage downstream so that it does not enter the lake. It has been erroneously reported to the Tribunal by the owner of a local school that a road had been built by us.”
The desilting of the lake and the movement of trucks transporting silt require a pathway. “This is a temporary arrangement from our side only to facilitate completion of the desilting,” he said. RMN Infrastructure had been contracted with the job at a cost of Rs 100 crore, the official added.
Another official said BDA would take at least a year to complete the desilting work after which the Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board will take up construction of the Sewage Treatment Plant so that the water is treated before it enters the lake.
Bellandur Lake is among the biggest lakes in the city covering 916 acres and 43 guntas. Data furnished by BDA officials reveals that 57.7% of the overall silt has been transported from the lake through tippers fixed with GPS. A total of 16.88 lakh cubic meters of silt have already been removed from the lake.
“We have stopped the desilting work here temporarily since July due to the rain,” the official added. BDA is carrying out desilting work at Varthur Lake too with 96% of the silt being removed.