Lakes of Bengaluru: Locals throng Yelahanka lake after civic body breathes life into it

The lake today stands as one of the major destinations frequented by people. (Express photo by Jithendra M.)

After years of neglect, the lake today stands as one of the major destinations frequented by people. It was in 2010 that former Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) mayor S K Nataraj announced the restoration of the Allalasandra, Yelahanka and Atturu lakes.

When the mayor visited them, most of the lakes in Yelahanka were in a very bad shape, according to local residents. Untreated sewage from residential and commercial properties used to enter the lakes and their water-holding capacity was reduced owing to the accumulation of silt.

Seven years after the announcement was made, the BBMP started the Yelahanka lake’s restoration in 2017. A children’s park and a jogging track have been built around it.

In 2019, the BBMP also started boating in the lake. The boating project was handed over to the Karnataka State Tourism Development Corporation a year ago.

A children’s park and a jogging track have been built around it. (Express photo by Jithendra M.)

Local residents elated

Ravi Prakash said he had stayed in Yelahanka for the past 10 years and was a witness to the deterioration of the lake. “The BBMP took the development works here and today the lake is in a good shape. A jogging track and children’s play area have come up. The garden around the lake is very beautiful. The kind of facilities which have been put here are great,” he said.

The Yelahanka lake is 5.2 km away from the Puttenahalli lake. Concerns over a 370 MW gas power plant coming up in close proximity to the lake worry environmentalists as they fear the pollution would affect not only the lake but also the birds visiting the waterbody.

The Yelahanka lake is 5.2 km away from the Puttenahalli lake.(Express photo by Jithendra M.)

The Yelahanka Puttenahalli Lake Conservation Trust is in a legal battle with the Karnataka Power Corporation Limited, which is setting up the plant. In September 2022, the Supreme Court ordered the status quo on the construction of the power plant near the lake.

Kendriya Vihar, a residential complex in Yelahanka, gets flooded in heavy rain. BBMP officials say the complex has encroached on a part of the lake. “The complex is built at the edge of the lake, so water from the lake overflows and floods the apartment during heavy rains. A few people have also encroached on the land around the lake,” said an official.

Revenue Minister R Ashok said last year that 133.35 of the 1,371.2 acres of lakes in Yelahanka were under encroachments.