State govt should revive wetlands in city, order removal of encroachments

The state government’s plan to appeal against the NGT order is yet again a reminder that our bureaucracy is bankrupt and our state is run by a bunch of fools. The recent floods in Bengaluru should have been a wake up call. The reason why the city was flooded was due to the mismanagement of its wetlands. If that did not shake up the government, the Cauvery crisis should have.

While two states are fighting over water presently, in future there could be more protests in every city and every street in the state as there may not be any water to fight over. The problem lies in the fact that the state government does not want to see the aftermath of its failure to revive our wetlands and lakes. In simple terms, the wetlands are the kidneys of a landscape as it is they which recharge our lakes and rejuvenate them. It’s unbelievable that the state government wants to reduce open spaces and let encroachments kill our lakes. Surveys have identified the wetlands in the city and the government only has to declare them as such and order removal of encroachments. If there’s political will, this will not be a herculean task. But is the government interested?