BENGALURU: The historic Ulsoor lake, measuring 108 acres, is almost dry as the lake engineers attached to Bengaluru Central City Corporation (BCCC) have begun development of the main water body as well as the sedimentation tank and Kalyani.
As per officials, the lake desilting is being taken up under a Rs 4 crore National Disaster Mitigation Fund (NDMF) grant, and the work of desilting is being done after nearly two decades. The work began by diverting the water through the outlet.
The lake is still receiving 1.5 MLD of treated water from Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB), and officials concerned have been asked to study the situation and explore the option to divert the treated water into the major drain until the desilting is completed.
“The desilting work will begin in the next two weeks in full swing, and the tank will become empty. The fishing contractors were asked to clear the remaining stock from the water body, and accordingly, they have caught the fish and cleared, and release the fishlings once the restoration is completed,” said Shilpa, Assistant Executive Engineer, Lakes, BCCC.
She added that the fish contractor’s period will be extended as the development work will be taken into consideration.
The 120 members from the fishermen community under the banner name ‘Bengaluru Meenu Utpanna Mattu Maratagara Sangha’ have been involved in fishing and maintenance of the lake for the last 14 years. They say the BCCC officials had set January 31 as a deadline to clear the stock, and accordingly, the activity was stopped.
“The water levels have been reduced to 3 feet, and fishing with a net is not possible. Last time complete desilting was done in 2001-2002, and since then, no complete desilting has been done,” said Subbaiah, Secretary of the Sangha.
He added that after partial cleaning in 2020, the contract was also renewed. The association paid Rs 50,000 for the lease period and released fishlings worth lakhs, but within a few days, the fishlings and small fish died. The treatment was done, and the issue was addressed. “Now once the desilting is completed, which may take three months to four months, and water is filled again, the fishing will be taken up,” he said.
Meanwhile, regular walkers and activists have also expressed joy over the development and say that the pathway has been developed from the RBANMS College side up to the Fire and Emergency Service Head Office side.
“Since the work is happening on the site, walking on one stretch for the public has been stopped by the authorities, and once completed, walkers can have access to Annaswamy Mudaliar Road side of the park.”