Activists request political parties to prioritise protection, development of Bengaluru lakes

Sowmya Raju | NT

Bengaluru: Lake activists in Karnataka have submitted a manifesto recommendation to major political parties ahead of the Assembly elections. The manifesto recommendation, drafted by Nagesh Aras, a core member and co-founder of Friends of Lakes, has been approved and seconded by all lake groups in the city, with input from representatives of the lake groups.

The activists are not making demands but asking political parties to consider their recommendations for the development and protection of lakes in the city. Nagesh Aras said, “These are not demands, but are 'asks' from activists to political parties.”

The recommendations include nine demands, such as strengthening the Karnataka Tank Conservation and Development Authority (KTCDA) to protect and conserve lakes/ tanks in Karnataka by reconstituting the Technical Approval Committee (TAC) with environmental/ ecological experts (geologists, hydrogeologists, limnologists, toxicologists), and civil engineers, and so on.

Another demand is to develop KTCDA as a single-window clearance process for the development of lakes/tanks, and no lake should be developed without a Detailed Project Report (DPR) that is duly approved by the TAC, irrespective of size and custodianship of the lake, and placed in the public domain.

The activists also requested the constitution of District and state-level lake committees as per the orders of the High Court of Karnataka and the implementation of the 2012 orders of the High Court of Karnataka based on Justice NK Patil's report.

Other demands include the survey of all water bodies and their inlets and outlets, authentic reports to be tabled in the Assembly with a specific budget allocated for actions, stopping the building of roads and bridges inside or in the buffer zones of the lakes/ tanks, introducing a zerotolerance policy towards encroachments and illegal rejuvenation of water bodies/lakes/tanks, and formulating policy/laws for citizen (stakeholders) participation under participatory governance as per constitutional amendments 73 and 74 passed by the parliament.

The activists also ask for environmental and ecological aspects to be given priority in the DPR of lakes, including rainwater harvesting, groundwater recharging, and flood mitigation.

During the filling up of lakes with treated water from STPs, real-time continuous monitoring of water quality must be made mandatory and encouraged. Lastly, the activists demand the introduction of a policy/law for smooth and faster clearance for the development of lakes via CSR donations with due approval from KTCDA and following standard engineering and environmental standards.