BENGALURU: The Greater Bengaluru Authority (GBA) has assured residents that areas like Manyata Tech Park, Sai Layout, Outer Ring Road and Vaddarapalya in Horamavu will not face flooding this monsoon. This is because the desilting of Hebbal and Nagawara lakes, which used to overflow during the rainy season, is expected to be completed by April-end.
“The desilting process has been undertaken specially to reduce flooding in surrounding areas of the water bodies. Earlier, both these lakes used to overflow during the monsoon, flooding surrounding roads and residential areas,” M Maheshwar Rao, Chief Commissioner, GBA, told TNIE.
A senior official from the Project Implementation Unit (PIU) stated that they are racing against time to complete the desilting and restoration of Hebbal lake which is spread across over 180 acres. “More than eight bulldozers have been deployed to clear tonnes of silt deposited in the lake bed for years. We aim to complete the desilting of the lake by the end of April. Around Rs 20 crores have been allocated for desilting, pitching bunds and restoration of wetland,” the official said.
Currently, the unit has been able to clear 10 acres of encroachment by the Fisheries Research and Information Centre on the lake survey number 37 of Hebbala village near Kodigenahalli.
A ground visit by the TNIE also found that the forest department and Karnataka Power Transmission Corporation Limited (KPTCL) has encroached on the lake. While KPTCL has installed heavy power lines in survey number 37, KFD has established a nursery on 8.20 guntas in survey number 38, right beside the large storm waterdrain flowing all the way from RT Nagar.
Asked about the encroachments, the official said, “KPTCL has already paid funds to GBA to establish the lines. But we will conduct a survey on where these power lines connect and how they are utilised. Hence, we are yet to decide if we have to build a separate fencing for this power transmission established in the lake. Regarding the forest department, we will issue a notice asking them to clear the nursery soon.”
Nagawara Lake, located a few kilometers away from Hebbal, is being restored at a cost of Rs 18 crore. “Around 1 lakh cubic metres of sediment is being removed to increase the depth for storing water. Since the lake has a small single inlet bringing storm water from Hebbal and RT Nagar, we are building a bigger inlet and silt trap around the lake,” the official said.