Karnataka - Mangalore   

Emmekere faces threat of extinction

Death pangs: A major portion of the Emmekere has turned into a playground, thanks to the dumping of construction waste and loose soil into it.

MANGALORE: Emmekere, an old lake in Hoige Bazar ward in the city, is facing the threat of extinction.

One-third of the lake area remains alive, but the remaining portion has been converted into a playground due to the dumping of construction waste and loose soil into it.

The dumping of waste materials into the lake, which was spread over 3.63 acres of land, had started after 1983, said Muralidhar Bolar, a former councillor who resides nearby.

The lake was the main source of water supplied to paddy fields in Bolar and Pandeshwar. The areas did not face the problem of floods due to the presence of the lake, he said. The problem of floods started after the lake expanse had shrunk, and buildings came up in nearby areas, he said. Mr. Muralidhar said that the Department of Fisheries used to rear fish in the lake. But now silt had accumulated, and weeds had grown in it, he said.

He said that when he was councillor, steps were taken to stop dumping of construction materials in the lake, in 2002. Retaining walls e were constructed to protect the lake. But still lot of work had to be done, he said.

A resident of the area said that some people had been using the encroached portion of the lake as a short-cut route to their houses.

P. Nemu Kottari, a resident of Jeppu, said that if the Government did not conserve what remained of the lake, wells in the nearby areas would go dry. This would force people to depend on water supplied by the corporation. The city had lost lakes such as Arekere, Tavarekere and Onikere due to encroachments. Moilakere at Mahakalipadpu and Gujjarakere in Jeppu too were facing the threat of encroachment. The Government should protect the Baikady lake at Padil and the Kavoor lake, he said. Mr. Kottari. who is the secretary of the Gujjarakere Theertha Samrakshana Samithi, said that the samithi had been urging the Government to revive Gujjara kere, another prominent water body in the city, for the past six years. But nothing had been done, he alleegd.

The Karnataka High Court had, on September 17, directed the Government to protect all the lakes in the State. It had appointed the member-secretary of the Karnataka State Legal Services Authority to monitor lake development activities, he said. Mr. Kottari said that depending on the Nethravati water was not the only solution to solve the water crisis in the city. If lakes in the city limits were developed, the corporation would be able to supply enough water, he said.

Mayor Ganesh Hosabettu said the corporation was yet to chalk out specific plans to develop lakes in the city.

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