Lake fencing begins

The controversial Byrasandra Lake will at last see some sign of developmental work   with BDA commissioning the fencing of around 14 acres of the lake land on February 17.

These works were inaugurated by MP, South Bangalore, Ananth Kumar, along with the MLA, Dr. Hemachandra Sagar, and the Corporator, Gangambika (ward 153), on February 17.
Speaking on the occasion, Anantha Kumar said: "The tank will receive water from the sewage treatment plant. A children's park and walking track will be come up as soon as the fencing is finished."
The Byrasandra Lake, located at the end of the RBI Colony (Jayanagar Ward 153), was once a thriving water source for the villagers. But, over the time, the lake has gone dry and has been turned into a waste dumping yard. The lake bed being naturally fertile has nurtured the unruly growth of grass and has become a paradise for rodents.
Prof. Khan, joint secretary, RB Extension, RWA, said: "Dumping of garbage and illegal occupation of some shopkeepers will finally stop. Residents are very happy about this move to develop the tank."
At present one chunk of 14 acres 11 gunte of the lake land is under the control of the BDA and a 1 acre 32 gunte portion has been encroached upon and it has to be recovered.
In 1985, the State Government formed an expert committee to examine the problems relating to preservation and restoration of lakes in Bangalore. Byrasandra Lake was then an unused tank bed and it was handed over to the Forest Department in order to establish a tree park. They planted a few trees and since then the lake had dried up and no efforts were made to develop.
Later there was a twist in the tale. In 2005, the lake was 'sold' by Indian Overseas Bank in an auction for a sum of Rs.7.60 crore. One Siera Developers had taken a loan from the bank's Jayanagar branch, for which the tank was illegally used as collateral. They defaulted on the loan and the bank proceeded to recover its dues. It was at that time Subba Rao and late Visveshwara, senior advocate, filed a case in the High Court under the flagship of the RBI Society and obtained a stay.  The High Court called the auction null and void in April 2011 and pronounced Byrasandra Tank (Lake) as Government property. Subba Rao said, "Anticipating the bank's next appeal to Supreme Court, a caveat was filed because of which the case was dismissed in July 2011."
After Ananth Kumar's visit on December 29, 2011, the lake was handed over to BDA. Now, BDA has taken the initiative of developing it. The irony is that the government was never the petitioner and is not aware that the lake belonged to it!

BDA owns Byrasandra Lake
The initial hitch in the ownership of Byrasandra Lake between the Forest Department, BDA and BBMP was overcome in 2011, and today it is owned by BDA. Somesh, EE, BDA, said: "Under Phase I, the tank/lake will be fenced and development work will begin in Phase II after interacting with the local residents."
Subba Rao is a happy man as his efforts are finally paying off. He said, "We have confidence in Somesh. He has assured us that he will take suggestions from residents and proceed ahead. I am confident that the work will go as planned by BDA this time!"
Corporator Gangambika said, "This was a long pending work and now the lake will see some development. BDA will fence the 14 acres and desilt it. The proposed plan for future is, the storm water will be filtered (under ground) through an inlet and after further chemical free purification/filtering, the clear water will be let into the tank area. Extra water will be diverted through an outlet. The filter will be cleaned and silt will be cleared on a regular basis. The treatment plant is designed by IIT Kanpur, keeping up with soil bio-technology as part of lake/tank restoration project."
The encroachment land and the two existing roads will not be disturbed for now. Only the available 14 acres out of 15 acres and 8 guntas will be fenced to prohibit further encroachment as per the orders by the High Court.

--MANVITA MASAGODE