Karnataka government fined for inaction on Bengaluru's foaming, burning Bellandur Lake

Bengaluru's horrific Bellandur Lake is frothing again. And this time the National Green Tribunal (NGT) has cracked the whip. The apex environmental tribunal on Thursday ordered the Karnataka government to set aside Rs 500 crore for the clean-up of the lake, and gave it a month to come up with a detailed action plan to restore the lake.

Accusing them of negligence in the restoration of the lake, the NGT ordered the Karnataka government and the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) to submit detailed action plans on cleaning up the lake. It also came down on them heavily for neglecting the conservation on lakes and failing to take action to prevent encroachment of storm water drains.

The NGT fined the Karnataka government Rs 50 crore and handed a Rs 25 crore fine to the BBMP. The green bench ordered the Karnataka government to implement the recommendations of the Manoj Panjwani Committee, and to ensure that no pollutant water is discharged into the already polluted lake.

The NGT also set up a committee headed by retired Supreme Court judge and former state Lokayukta Santosh Hegde to oversee the implementation of its orders, Deccan Herald reported. This committee would include Prof TV Ramachandra of the Centre for Ecological Sciences at the elite Indian Institute of Science (IISc) and a nominee of the Central Pollution Control Board.

Bellandur Lake has become a byword for the unmitigated environmental damage that is an intricate part of the story of searing economic growth in urban India. The lake has often caught fire and often froths up so much the foam spills over onto nearby roads. The NGT had suo motu taken cognisance of the issue  in February 2017. It had also ordered the state government to work on the restoration of two other lakes in Bengaluru - Agara and Varthur.