Once a pristine water body, Vrishabhavathi today silently bears the brunt of city's waste

BENGALURU: KC Ramu stands in silence, staring at the dark and murky water flowing steadily before him - a river carrying the weight of human apathy. Every time the 72-year-old visits Vrishabhavathi river that flows through Okalipuram, Magadi Road and Mysuru Road, he's drawn back to a time when the water body was a boon for the neighbourhood.
“The river has deteriorated over the last 50 years.For 10 years, I drank the crystal-clear water from this very spot and even swam here. My father would hold my hand and together we'd walk through lush green patches to get close to the bank where we'd have a hearty time playing in the water,“ reminisced Ramu, fondly. “She (the river) was such a beauty. Sadly, my own children aren't fortunate enough to see her in her most pristine form,“ he says.
Staring at the fumes rising from the river bank a few meters away , Ramu grows quiet. Though he and his family moved away from the river bank to Vidya Peeta Road in Kengeri, the septuagenarian visits the place daily to offer prayers to his father who was buried near the river. Ramu's father was a thriving agriculturist who was among the many who established farms to raise coconut plantations and engage in other farming activities along the river.
Krishna N, a farmer, says his fate is in some sense entwined with this river. “My eldest son has been using the dirty river water to irrigate our fields for a long time now. But he keeps falling ill and has difficulty breathing.I want him to stop farming but we have no other means of livelihood,“ said the 75-year-old, crouching by the river bank.
“I think my lungs have turned black due to the toxic air I inhale every day , and to think the very water I drank as a child is killing me now! My daughter is calling me to the city but how can I leave my farm behind,“ says Vijay S, a resident of Kodipalya in Kengeri.
GLORIOUS PAST
Vrishabhavathi river is believed to originate near Kadu Malleshwara temple in Malleswaram. A second stream merges into the river from Bull Temple side in Basavanagudi. According to an IISc study, the river flows through the southwestern parts of Bengaluru and joins Suvarnamukhi river which then leads to Arkavathy river.The water body covers a distance of 52km, snaking through concrete spaces, taking the weight of the entire city's waste. The river has witnessed tonnes of domestic and industrial waste sully its water since the early 80.