The sewage water had triggered a severe depletion of oxygen level, choking the fish to death. The fish died due to dirty water that flowed into the pond during the rains, said a staffer at the Bal Bhavan office.
However, the office of the Deputy Director, Horticulture, in charge of the ponds at the Cubbon park and the Bal Bhavan secretary refused to take responsibility. Horticulture department Secretary S G Hegde revealed that the pond at Cubbon park was initially meant to be only a lotus pond for harvesting water.
However some vested interests, whom he refused to name, filled the pond with fish, said Hegde. He admitted that the pond was overcrowded with fish and was not well maintained. He confirmed the Fisheries department had also told him that there were too many fish in the pond which had led them to the struggle for oxygen. The Horticulture department now intended to clean up the pond. "Our first step would be to clean the pond and then harvest it," said Hegde.