The High Court of Karnataka on Tuesday said it is now time for the authorities to get into action on the field to prevent encroachment of lakes, tanks, and stormwater drains as there are enough materials available in the form of suggestions and recommendations made in various reports by various committees and agencies for taking steps to protect these waterbodies.
A Division Bench comprising Chief Justice Prasanna B. Varale and Justice M.G.S. Kamal made these observations while hearing PIL petitions related to preservation of waterbodies in the city.
“Need of the hour is now for progression from suggestions to action...” the Bench observed.
Also, the court said that an action plan for taking concrete steps on the field for protecting these waterbodies has to be prepared and submitted before the court by the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike, the departments of urban development, revenue, the Bengaluru Water Supply and Sewerage Board, the Karnataka State Pollustion Control Board and the Karnataka Tank Conservation and Development Authority.
Needless to state that the action has to be prepared in coordination with all these stakeholders through consultation process, the court said while appointing the secretary of the Karnataka State Legal Services Authority (KSLSA) as convener for convening meetings of the stakeholders, preparation of agenda, and formulation of minutes of the meeting.
Earlier, Chief Commissioner of the BBMP submitted an affidavit on comprehensive scheme for preventing further encroachments of storm water drains elaborating the recommendations made in various reports, including the interim reports submitted by the National Environmental Engineering Research Institute (NEERI) to protect the lakes.
After going through the reports, the court expressed satisfaction on the manner in which the senior officers had attached importance for the matter by coming out with the suggestions based on various reports.
