BENGALURU: Lake activists have flayed multiple agencies for failing to check the direct inflow of sewage into waterbodies. This comes after latest data from Karnataka State Pollution Control Board (KSPCB) revealed the quality of water in 78 of the city's 106 lakes fell under E-category - implying it's unfit for aquatic life - for most part of last year.
TOI recently alerted KSPCB over the delay in updating monthly water quality analysis data on its website as details till only September 2022 were available. Following this, the board updated the data till November. The website now provides comprehensive water quality analysis data from April to November.
According to the data, water quality of 78 lakes was in E-category between April and November 2022 - many lakes exited and entered the list repeatedly. Activists say BBMP, BWSSB and KSPCB have done nothing to address the problem despite several instances of fish kill being reported from some of these lakes during the past one year. While 37 lakes were in E-category in November, 11 were in it in October too.
Activists alleged BBMP's lake department had failed to regularly monitor waterbodies for sewage flow, while BWSSB had not diverted underground drainage. KSPCB is merely a paper tiger with no action initiated against civic agencies, they added.
Ramprasad V, a lake activist, hit out at KSPCB wondering why it had not initiated any punitive action against the agencies in the wrong. The board is lethargic and has limited itself to quality analysis. This attitude needs to change. It should start issuing notices to officials, he said.
Lake activist Raghavendra B Pachhapur said the pollution board's delay in updating monthly data is a key concern. Pachhapur has filed over 10 complaints with regard to sewage and fish kill in city lakes last year but there has been no action. The agencies are avoiding activists filing complaints, he claimed.
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