You are sitting with friends by a lake and having a good time... It does sound like an ideal spot, right? While that can be possible in a rural setting, in a city like Bengaluru, it is not! Namma ooru was once home to over 1,000 lakes at one time, today the few that are left are 90 percent polluted. But one man, Anand Malligavad, a city-based techie is on a mission to revive the lakes that we have lost in our city. We delve deeper into his lake revival project, and more.
Coming from a rural background, Anand spent most of his childhood playing in and around a lake. “Comparing the Bengaluru that I saw in 1996 to present day, there has been a drastic change. Our lakes have been abused and destroyed. Studying in a government school that was situated near a lake, I spent most of my growing years at a lake. When I got an opportunity to work with lakes, I immediately jumped forward to take it up.”
The first-ever lake that Anand managed to revive was the Kyalasanahalli Lake which happened in a span of 45 days. But this was not an easy feat to achieve.
“I had to study the ecology and biodiversity surrounding the lakes and also visited several lakes each of which was different phenomena. I had come with sustainable solutions to maintain lakes, come up with mistake proofing ideas etc,” he adds saying that the trash like glass, fibre, wool that were dumped by industries is what caused the condition of lakes to worsen. Anand through this project, wanted to bring the glory and beauty of the lakes Bengaluru was once known for. Anand adopted his first lake in September 2016 at the Bring Back the Lake event organised by the Government of Karnataka. He shares, “All the tools and skills I learnt in engineering, I put to use in this project in optimising time, movement of vehicle, consumption of diesel etc.”
During the Kyalasanahalli lake project, Anand used four JCB’s and six truck and cleared the mud. They created five islands, 3.2 kilometer walking and jogging track. But what’s a lake with greenery around it? Anand shares,”I defined the lake such 60 percent will be water body and 40 percent green belt. With budget for the plantation, I approached an organisation who provided this project with saplings need for the green belt.” Anand wanted to start planting the green belt of June 5. He was joined by 1,600 volunteers who helped him plant over 5,600 saplings. In a span of a year and a half, Anand has managed to revive over three lakes. On his plans for the future, he adds, “I have plans to revive lakes in zone 1,2,3,4 in Bengaluru. By 2025, I want to reach the target over 45 lakes, “ he concludes.
Memories of his childhood playing near a water body prompted this city-based techie to restore one in just 45 days... and he has similar initiatives planned for the future as well.
