Union Finance and Corporate Affairs Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Sunday visited Kalena Agrahara Lake, for which she got funding under the Member of Parliament’s Local Area Development (MPLAD) scheme for its rejuvenation.
Elected to the Rajya Sabha from Karnataka, she secured funding for the lake, sprawled over seven acres and 30 guntas in South Bengaluru, in 2017.
A BBMP statement revealed that Rs 75 lakh was sanctioned under the MPLAD scheme, besides which a further Rs 75 lakh was sanctioned in the 2017-18 state budget, followed by Rs 1.5 crore in the 2018-19 budget for the lake’s redevelopment.
The Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) has removed the sludge from the lake and built a 150-KLD sewage treatment plant, besides laying walking tracks and building toilets in the lake premises for visitors.
“The lake had reported eutrophication (excessive richness of nutrients in a water body) and reduction in capacity due to silting before the development works were undertaken. Also, the lake boundary was not defined owing to encroachments. Many such problems have been addressed now,” a BBMP official said.