The high court directed the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike to see to it that storm water drains are not encroached upon. The next hearing has been scheduled for August 5.
Bengaluru: The Karnataka high court has directed the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) to install CCTV cameras around all lakes in Bengaluru in a bid to protect the lakes from being encroached upon.
The high court has directed the BBMP to save and maintain the lakes in Bengaluru. It has also asked the BBMP to see to it that public does not throw any material into water bodies and to keep storm water drains safe from encroachment.
The Citizens Action group, Dollars Layout Residents Welfare Association of JP Nagara 4th phase had filed a public interest litigation in this regard. The Division Bench comprising Chief Justice Abhay Shreeniwas Oka and Justice HT Narendra Prasad heard the PIL, issued directives and scheduled the next hearing for August 5. The PIL was filed in 2014.
The BBMP has been asked to bring into action a grievance redressal system within six months to address and solve all problems related to water bodies in the city.
It also sought the Survey Department to submit reports once a month regarding 250 entities that were encroached upon and the process of retrieving it.
The Bench also asked BBMP to follow Article 51 A (g) which aims at protecting and improving the natural environment including forests, lakes, rivers and wildlife, and demands to have compassion for living creatures.