The BDA’s move to build the mesh around the Bellandur Lake is an ad hoc mechanism and does not solve the problem of lake contamination. Constructing a mesh may make the lake look aesthetic, but the groundwater is still contaminated. In simple words the BDA’s agenda is to destroy Bellandur lake.
Now, the BWSSB says it needs four years to construct sewage treatment plants (STPs). Well, as a long term solution, the STPs have to be there and there is no alternative. But does it take four years to construct four STPs is a question the officials should ask themselves. In China, a 43-storey building was constructed in 2 days. This is the kind of improvement in technology we are looking at and the BWSSB says it needs four years!
In another instance, the Kote Theertha Lake in Gokarna and Jakkur Lake near Yelahanka were revived in the span of two months. If there’s a will, there will be a way. The BWSSB has to find its agenda to stop the lake contamination. Every government work will have bureaucratic hurdles and the Bellandur Lake should be revived crossing these hurdles. If money-making is the agenda of the officials, then the project will never see the light of the day.
Against this backdrop, the best solution before the state government is to handover the lake rejuvenation to the Green Battalion officers of the Army. There will be no corruption and the project will be completed in less than 18 months. It’s time the government utilizes the best solutions available.
(The writer is a professor at IISc)
