Wanton neglect: Actions taken to restore Bengaluru lakes found to be superficial

The Bengaluru Environment Trust (BET), in its report “Citizen’s Agenda for Bellandur/Varthur Catchment”, has found that the plan to rejuvenate Bellandur, Varthur and Agara lakes in Bengaluru is “ad-hoc, illogical and not supported by well documented data and scientific facts.” Following is an excerpt from the BET report, which is actually an official submission to government bodies and the National Green Tribunal (NGT) appointed monitoring committee to oversee the rejuvenation process:

***

Actions taken by the government to restore Bellandur, Varthur and Agara lakes is found to be superficial and leaves the citizens wanting for more. In-depth analysis of the government’s submissions to National Green Tribunal over the past few years revealed continued wanton neglect of responsibilities, eluding courts with inaccurate facts and escaping public scrutiny with non-transparent operations.
Treated wastewater is a precious commodity in today’s times. In the absence of treated wastewater policy and the necessary data to make informed decisions, injudicious allocation of treated wastewater to Minor irrigation can leave the Bellandur and Varthur lakes with scant or no water, turning these large lakes into small ponds. The government must prepare treated wastewater utilization plan for Bellandur/Varthur catchment, with a very clear policy decision to use the treated wastewater to maintain the lakes of Bengaluru up to its brim.
Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB) is using the oldest trick in the book -- Cherry picking data to show compliance to NGT. It must stop doing that. The existence of four million liters per day (MLD) Madivala sewage treatment plant (STP), so far hidden from NGT, must be included. Important transparency and accountability metrics like STP operating capacities, wastewater treatment efficiencies, flow levels in the raja kaluves and sewer trunk lines, sewage transportation efficiencies, most of which is generated, is not used adequately and must be used for decision making and compliance monitoring.
Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP)’s epic negligence is palpable from its inability in putting simple interventions like waste and silt trapping structures in the drains. Despite being flogged from many sides – high court, NGT, public – it is unable to clean up solid waste in the drains and clear encrochments. Appropriate silt and waste trapping structures at regular distances, with daily removal and disposal of solid waste, must be immediately done in accordance with law. Exact area and location of buffer zones, available for bio-diversity park plantation must be immediately determined and plantation must start as soon as possible.
Karnataka State Pollution Control Board (KSPCB) has self-diminished its role to issuing notices. The debate on hazardous nature of the slush and silt has continued for years till today while KSPCB should have put that to rest a long time ago. The real time monitors show wide fluctuations in water quality, which are unequivocally indicators of frequent episodic industrial discharges. KSPCB must wake up from slumber, investigate and find the sources. The issue of illegal industries is far from over. There is a need for speed in stopping the operations of illegal industries.

Bengaluru Development Authority (BDA)’s one-time rejuvenation is a complete mess. It’s ad-hoc , piecemeal and impractical nature of work has worsened pollution of the lakebed and resulted in infructuous expenses. Ground truthing reveals that dredged muck dumped in mounds is rotting on the lakebed creating a hazard to the people around and also polluting the lake. Until the disposal plan is finalized, the dredging must stop. In terms of silt disposal, an astounding 77% of the desilting cost (i.e. Rs 131 crores) is allocated for disposal of silt to a quarry 25 kms away. A cost-benefit analysis must be done to determine if the disposal costs are justified. Perhaps desilting the drains leading to the lakes, is a better alternative.
More important than the one-time rejuvenation is the lake specific maintenance policy. Maintenance plan for Bellandur, Varthur and Agara must be developed at the earliest, clearly documenting the execution of maintenance activities with proper timing and with adequate resources esp. budget.
Several court orders -- NGT O.A No 593/2017 , NGT O.A. No 804/2017, NGT O.A No 111/2020 , High Court W.P No. 817/2008, High Court W.P No. 24739/2012 , High Court W.P No. 38401/2014 -- are relevant and those orders must be followed.
Our analysis has identified 31 agenda points on which government action is needed. We earnestly request the government to wake-up from its slumber and get into meaningful action.
---
Click here to read the full report

Comments

Urgent need to study cause of large number of natural deaths in Gulf countries

By Venkatesh Nayak* According to data tabled in Parliament in April 2018, there are 87.76 lakh (8.77 million) Indians in six Gulf countries, namely Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). While replying to an Unstarred Question (#6091) raised in the Lok Sabha, the Union Minister of State for External Affairs said, during the first half of this financial year alone (between April-September 2018), blue-collared Indian workers in these countries had remitted USD 33.47 Billion back home. Not much is known about the human cost of such earnings which swell up the country’s forex reserves quietly. My recent RTI intervention and research of proceedings in Parliament has revealed that between 2012 and mid-2018 more than 24,570 Indian Workers died in these Gulf countries. This works out to an average of more than 10 deaths per day. For every US$ 1 Billion they remitted to India during the same period there were at least 117 deaths of Indian Workers in Gulf ...

A comrade in culture and controversy: Yao Wenyuan’s revolutionary legacy

By Harsh Thakor* This year marks two important anniversaries in Chinese revolutionary history—the 20th death anniversary of Yao Wenyuan, and the 50th anniversary of his seminal essay "On the Social Basis of the Lin Biao Anti-Party Clique". These milestones invite reflection on the man whose pen ignited the first sparks of the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution and whose sharp ideological interventions left an indelible imprint on the political and cultural landscape of socialist China.

History, culture and literature of Fatehpur, UP, from where Maulana Hasrat Mohani hailed

By Vidya Bhushan Rawat* Maulana Hasrat Mohani was a member of the Constituent Assembly and an extremely important leader of our freedom movement. Born in Unnao district of Uttar Pradesh, Hasrat Mohani's relationship with nearby district of Fatehpur is interesting and not explored much by biographers and historians. Dr Mohammad Ismail Azad Fatehpuri has written a book on Maulana Hasrat Mohani and Fatehpur. The book is in Urdu. He has just come out with another important book, 'Hindi kee Pratham Rachna: Chandayan' authored by Mulla Daud Dalmai.' During my recent visit to Fatehpur town, I had an opportunity to meet Dr Mohammad Ismail Azad Fatehpuri and recorded a conversation with him on issues of history, culture and literature of Fatehpur. Sharing this conversation here with you. Kindly click this link. --- *Human rights defender. Facebook https://www.facebook.com/vbrawat , X @freetohumanity, Skype @vbrawat

India's health workers have no legal right for their protection, regrets NGO network

Counterview Desk In a letter to Union labour and employment minister Santosh Gangwar, the civil rights group Occupational and Environmental Health Network of India (OEHNI), writing against the backdrop of strike by Bhabha hospital heath care workers, has insisted that they should be given “clear legal right for their protection”.

Uttarakhand tunnel disaster: 'Question mark' on rescue plan, appraisal, construction

By Bhim Singh Rawat* As many as 40 workers were trapped inside Barkot-Silkyara tunnel in Uttarkashi after a portion of the 4.5 km long, supposedly completed portion of the tunnel, collapsed early morning on Sunday, Nov 12, 2023. The incident has once again raised several questions over negligence in planning, appraisal and construction, absence of emergency rescue plan, violations of labour laws and environmental norms resulting in this avoidable accident.

Job opportunities decreasing, wages remain low: Delhi construction workers' plight

By Bharat Dogra* It was about 32 years back that a hut colony in posh Prashant Vihar area of Delhi was demolished. It was after a great struggle that the people evicted from here could get alternative plots that were not too far away from their earlier colony. Nirmana, an organization of construction workers, played an important role in helping the evicted people to get this alternative land. At that time it was a big relief to get this alternative land, even though the plots given to them were very small ones of 10X8 feet size. The people worked hard to construct new houses, often constructing two floors so that the family could be accommodated in the small plots. However a recent visit revealed that people are rather disheartened now by a number of adverse factors. They have not been given the proper allotment papers yet. There is still no sewer system here. They have to use public toilets constructed some distance away which can sometimes be quite messy. There is still no...

Women's rights leaders told to negotiate with Muslimness, as India's donor agencies shun the word Muslim

By A Representative Former vice-president Hamid Ansari has sharply criticized donor agencies engaged in nongovernmental development work, saying that they seek to "help out" marginalizes communities with their funds, but shy away from naming Muslims as the target group, something, he insisted, needs to change. Speaking at a book release function in Delhi, he said, since large sections of Muslims are poor, they need political as also social outreach.

Sardar Patel was on Nathuram Godse's hit list: Noted Marathi writer Sadanand More

Sadanand More (right) By A Representative In a surprise revelation, well-known Gujarati journalist Hari Desai has claimed that Nathuram Godse did not just kill Mahatma Gandhi, but also intended to kill Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel. Citing a voluminous book authored by Sadanand More, “Lokmanya to Mahatma”, Volume II, translated from Marathi into English last year, Desai says, nowadays, there is a lot of talk about conspiracy to kill Gandhi, Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose, and Shyama Prasad Mukherjee, but little is known about how the Sardar was also targeted.

Bihar’s land at ₹1 per acre for Adani sparks outrage, NAPM calls it crony capitalism

By A Representative The National Alliance of People’s Movements (NAPM) has strongly condemned the Bihar government’s decision to lease 1,050 acres of land in Pirpainti, Bhagalpur district, to Adani Power for a 2,400 MW coal-based thermal power project.

Counterview

Search This Blog