Bellandur rerun in Kolar water plant

KOLAR/BENGALURU: The toxic froth regularly seen in Bengaluru’s Bellandur lake has reared its ugly head in Kolar villages.

The much publicised Rs 1,300-crore Koramangala-Chellagatta Valley (KC Valley) project, which aims to fill tanks of Kolar district with treated water from Bengaluru has run into rough weather. Villagers near Kolar’s Lakshmisagara Tank, into which the treated water flows in, were shocked on Wednesday to see froth floating up from the supply canal. Froth could be seen all along the canal which connects to the tank.

People flocked to the spot to take selfies and shoot videos and shared them on WhatsApp.

Officials of the minor irrigation department, handling the Rs 1,300-crore Koramangala-Chellagatta Valley (KC Valley) project, rushed to the spot and stopped the supply of water. Asked what caused the froth, the authorities started passing the buck. Maintaining that they have been pumping clean water till now, SN Krishnappa, executive engineer (Kolar division), minor irrigation department, said “Since Monday, we’ve been receiving an additional 100 MLD (million litres per day) of treated water from the KC Valley. That’s when noticed the froth. We’re only pumping and transporting water. The Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board treats the water in its treatment plants and is responsible for quality.”

He added, “The additional water may be coming from a new treatment plant and that’s the reason for the foam. While we have temporarily stopped pumping, the stagnant water in the pipe is foamy. We have to take a decision what to do,” he said.

According to Krishnappa, between 150-180 MLD of treated water is transported through the 55-km pipeline every day.

BWSSB engineers said it’s treating water as per norms of the Karnataka State Pollution Control Board. “The BWSSB is concerned with treating water. After that, it’s the responsibility of the minor irrigation department. We regularly test the quality and there’s nothing wrong with it. On Wednesday too, we tested the water and it was clear. There’s no problem with our plant,” said an engineer.

BWSSB officials said the froth could be due to heavy rain last week and the STPs getting flooded with muddy water.