What explains Bengaluru floods?

Several areas in Bengaluru were inundated after a downpour two weeks ago. The scenes were familiar: people wading through water inside their houses and on the streets, and vehicles stuck on water-logged streets. Metrolife takes a look at three areas within the city to understand why they are vulnerable year after year.

Koramangala

Koramangala tank in 1971. DH Archives

Srinivagilu, Koramangala and Mestripalya lakes have given way for homes and other commercial spaces. Citizens are fighting to revive the Mestripalya lake.

Before: Srinivagilu tank, spread over 54 acres, and Koramangala lake, spread over 17 acres. Citizen efforts helped revive the Mestripalya lake, which has offered some relief to nearby areas.

Now: Lake beds taken up for housing colonies, National Games housing complex, Forum Mall, restaurants, offices.

Koramangala, two weeks ago.

Two weeks ago: The area was flooded, with water levels as high as 5 ft. Water entered about 100 homes and commercial establishments. Traffic was disrupted as roads disappeared under the water.

Hebbal Lake

Before: Spread over 160 acres, the lake is considered the prime reason why Hebbal is one of the oldest inhabited localities in Bengaluru. It met the drinking water needs of people living in villages in the vicinity, while also acting as a central point for the city’s agricultural economy. Historians say it was a water supply source for the British cantonment. It used to be a bird watcher’s paradise: over 40 species of migratory birds, including many from the Himalayan and Central Asian regions, could be spotted here.

Hebbal lake, for the longest time, has been used to release industrial waste, sewage and garbage, and is choked by hyacinth.

Now: The inflow of sewage and untreated industrial waste had left the lake completely unfit for human use. The spread of the lake has shrunk to just 93 acres.

Traffic in Hebbal is affected badly when it rains heavily. DH Photo B K Janardhan

Two weeks ago: The lakes overflowed, leading to flooding of nearby areas. Many thoroughfares within Manyata Tech Park were flooded. Water entered many homes.

Hosakerehalli

Before: Hosakere, 59.25 acres. Provided water for drinking and farming for villages nearby. Also attracted fisherfolk and dairy farmers.

Hosakere, spread over 59.25 acres, once provided water for drinking and farming. Today, sewage from several parts of the city flows into it.

Now: Sewage from Jayanagar, Chennammanakere Achukattu area, Padmanabhanagar, Chikkalsandra, Ittamadu, IGS Layout flows into this lake. About 4.37 acres taken up, allegedly encroached, to build the NICE expressway. Efforts at lake rejuvenation are underway, but not much has changed.

Hosakere, spread over 59.25 acres, once provided water for drinking and farming. Today, sewage from several parts of the city flows into it.

Two weeks ago: A portion of the wall along the storm-water drain collapsed in
Gurudatta Layout near Hosakerehalli. The area was flooded, water gushed into homes, children were stranded, and vehicles washed away.

Why it’s so bad

Experts attribute Bengaluru’s flooding woes to encroachments on lake beds, poor planning, and corruption at the municipal and political levels. Rejuvenation efforts have to be augmented with proper mathematical and hydro-geological calculations, says Ram Prasad, founder, Friends of Lakes, a citizen-led lake revival group.