The Karnataka State Pollution Control Board is washing its hands of Bellandur Lake’s frothing issue by stating that the root of the problem is the detergent and soap content released from households into the lake.
A Bangalore Mirror report said that KSPCB technical officials visited the lake almost a week ago and found that it wasn’t the industrial effluents that were causing the problem but increased usage of detergents by citizens living in the neighbourhood.
Speaking to Bangalore Mirror, Mohankumar Kondajji, KSPCB board member, said, “More than the industries, the pollution at Bellandur is due to domestic households.“
BM also quoted KSPCB chairman Ramachandra saying, “It was found that each family in the vicinity was found to be using about 4 kg of detergent every month. This detergent-rich water getting into lake triggered the frothing.”
“A detailed report that is due for next week might give a clear picture on what caused the pollution,”he added.
Six teams comprising environment officers, experts and engineers has been formed by KSPCB to check the performance, operation and maintenance of sewage treatment plants (STPs) in the apartments and commercial establishments. Any apartment which doesn’t meet the criteria set for sewage treatment would face action.
Ramachandra said, “The teams have been visiting every apartment in the vicinity of the lake to find out the condition of STPs. We will come to know whether the STPs are defunct or whether sewage treatment is being done in an unscientific way. Based on the findings by our teams, we will slap criminal cases against apartments that have violated rules and caused pollution in the lake.”
This is an aggregated report from Bangalore Mirror.