JOIN USUnion Minister for Environment and Forests Prakash Javadekar said he will write to the State government to take immediate steps to prevent the discharge of industrial effluents and untreated sewage into lakes in Bengaluru.
Javadekar, who chaired a meeting of Bengaluru MPs and MLAs on rejuvenation of lakes here on Tuesday, said his ministry would fund the rejuvenation if the State government took affirmative steps to block the entry of polluted water into the lakes.
Ministry officials briefed that over 600 industrial units as well as residential apartments were directly discharging industrial effluents and sewerage into the lakes.
Though around 300 residential apartments have set up treatment plants, either they are defunct or yet to function.The minister said he would ask the State government to start initiating action against guilty industrial units and residential blocks without delay.
If any industrial units failed to adhere to the norms, the government must close them down, he said. Besides, the government should take steps to remove encroachments near lakes as part of the restoration, he added.
Sewage generation
Bengaluru generates about 1,100 million litres of sewage per day while its installed sewage treatment capacity is just 780 million litres. Due to the lack of sewerage, only 450 million litres of sewage is collected and directed to the treatment plants. Resulting in almost 650 million litres of untreated sewage which is discharged into the local lakes or rivers.
Officials highlighted that some of the major lakes – Bellandur, Varthur, Madiwala and Puttenahalli – are highly polluted. Around 600 million litres of sewage per day is diverted to the treatment plants near Agara, Bellandur and Varthur lakes but only 200-220 million litres of sewage is treated and the rest flows into the lake system.
The Ministry will participate in the rejuvenation of these lakes by providing funds around Rs 20 to Rs 30 lakh per water body, Union Law Minister D V Sadananda Gowda, who also attended the meeting told Deccan Herald.
Elected representatives have urged the Centre to rejuvenate lakes in Bengaluru as it is important to recharge ground water with the receding water table in the City.