Mass fish death in Dorekere

At least 10,000 fish died in Dorekere after the heavy rain on Thursday.

Residents around Dorekere near Uttarahalli in the outskirts of the city woke up on Friday to find thousands of fish floating lifeless.

The residents estimated that at least 10,000 fish died after sewage flooded into the 28.17 acre-lake after heavy rain on Thursday. “The stench was unbearable. This happens every year. There is a sewage treatment plant nearby which is unscientifically constructed. It lets out raw sewage into the lake during heavy rain,” said M. Nagaraj, a resident.

Barely a year ago, thousands of fish were killed after sewage flooded the lake. Following that, the Karnataka State Pollution Control Board (KSPCB) had sent notices to Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB) for “negligence” in treating sewage.

“Nothing has changed since then. The Sewage Treatment Plant at Gowdanapalya Lake cannot handle the capacity of sewage floating into it. Most of the sewage is let out raw into Gowdanapalya Lake, whose tank bund has been heavily encroached. During heavy rain, sewage from this lake overflows into Dorekere,” said Puttaresh, KSPCB’s regional scientific officer.

“BWSSB does not have a sewage treatment plant in the area. In fact, there is no network drainage there. Just because there is sewage inflow, doesn’t mean BWSSB is responsible for it,” said Ramakrishna S.M.,  Chief Engineer  (Waste Water Management).