BENGALURU : The National Green Tribunal (NGT) expert committee on Friday pulled up officials after it found dead fish floating in sewage diversion channels connected to Bellandur Lake. Committee members rushed to the spot to take stock of the situation following a complaint raised by the residents of Whitefield and surrounding areas about the stench emanating from the sewage diversion channel.
They were shocked to find floating dead fish, garbage, filth and fish carcass entangled in the weeds towards Bellandur kodi side. They pulled up the officials for failing in their duty and submitting false reports to the committee stating that all measures were in place to control the entry of garbage and waste into diversion channels.
“If the metal barricades, as stated, had been in place, how did the dead fish enter into the channels? Directions were given to ensure that no garbage or waste enters and only water flows. This clearly means that proper orders have not been followed and that the officials have made false claims. This is not acceptable,” the NGT committee members.
Officials from Bangalore Development Authority (BDA), Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP), Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB) and Karnataka State Pollution Control Board (KSPCB) were present at the site as mute spectators.
The committee directed the officials to clear up the dead fish in one day. However, soon after the committee members left the site, the officials asked residents to tolerate the stench for a few more days saying that it was a long holiday weekend and there was no one on site to do the job.
This did not go down well with the residents. “It is absurd that the officials are asking us to deal with it for some more days. They are refusing to follow the NGT committee orders. They should spoken in front of them instead and faced further consequences. How can the government officials be so relaxed about it? They should live here to experience (the situation) and then make such statements,” said the residents.