Bengaluru: A week after, urban lakes remain without custodian

Bengaluru: It has been more than a week since Governor Vajubhai Vala’s nod brought city lakes under the Karnataka Tank Conservation and Development Authority (KTCDA) with the Minor Irrigation Department taking charge of all urban lakes. But the BBMP is yet to receive an official communication from the government on transferring the custody of lakes to KTCDA.

“We have not yet received any communication. The lakes which were under the BBMP ambit will continue to remain so. Even after we receive the orders, the lakes will be handed over only after all developmental works are completed,” said Mr Jagannath Rao, Deputy Conservator of Forests, BBMP lakes.
Official sources told Deccan Chronicle that custodians of the lakes will not change but KTCDA will act as a regulatory agency.

Mr Ram Prasad, co-founder, Friends of Lake, said, “Even if the custodian remains the same, they have to consult the regulatory agency. If all the provisions of the Karnataka Lake Conservation and Development Authority are incorporated in the KTCDA Act, we have no objections. If not, we will take legal recourse.”
A major loophole with the KTCDA is that it does not include lakes with an area of more than 20 sqkm.

Lake activist Nagesh Aras explained that though KLCDA and KTCDA are almost identical, KTCDA does not have a dedicated CEO and full-time staff. “With KLCDA, works were executed by the CEO and its dedicated staff. The KTCDA doesn't have full time staff. This is a serious issue, as decision-makers may not meet frequently enough and the execution may suffer as the officers have to take care of their own departments,” he said.

While both KLCDA and KTCDA Acts do not follow the National Green Tribunal’s order on buffer zones, the KTCDA Act mentions that 30 metres should be set aside as the buffer zone, but it excludes channels and wetlands.