'Janapriya' Township only in name

By Harichandan A.A.

BANGALORE, OCT. 6. The dream of owning a house has turned into a nightmare for the 623 families living in the Janapriya `Township' at Kadabagere. Going home at the end of a day's hard work, after commuting more than 20 km. from Bangalore, is anything but a happy prospect for them.

Poor quality of construction using substandard material, ``mysterious power cuts'' which cause shortage of water, cramped toilets that get clogged often, taps that leak, inadequate security... the list of their problems goes on.

Add to that the absence of an underground drainage system to clear sewage generated by the township, located in the catchment area of the Tippegondanahalli (T.G. Halli) reservoir, a precious source of drinking water for Bangalore, and the plight of the residents of the township is unenviable.

The residents say that the builder's men have found an easy way to manage the overflowing manholes over sewage lines: they cut off water supply. Untreated sewage is let out into the open fields surrounding the township, the residents add.

The ``open fields'' are part of the catchment area of the T.G Halli reservoir, and are a little over one km. from the Arkavati river on which the reservoir is built.

A study commissioned in 1998 by the Bangalore Metropolitan Region Development Authority (BMRDA) raised concern over the impact of the establishments that were allowed to come up in the catchment area of the reservoir, including Janapriya Township.

The representative of the builder admits that sewage is being let out ``into a two-acre plot close by''. Solid waste from the septic tank in the complex is transported in lorries to an undisclosed location.

Ironically, the builder got approval for the building plan for a ``group housing scheme and layout'' in ``Sy. No. 10/1, extent 6 acres of Kadabagere village, Dasanapura Hobli, Bangalore North taluk'' from the BMRDA.

In its permit issued to the builder in July 1996, the BMRDA said that the land in question was ``alienated by the order of the Deputy Commissioner, Bangalore, for residential use''.

Sources say the builder got clearance from the Karnataka State Pollution Control Board (KSPCB) by setting up a sewage treatment plant. But the residents say the treatment plant has not been used for the last two years. The plant was built within the area earmarked for the township. A copy of the township's approved plan that the builder provided to the residents did not show any treatment plant. Unable to bear the stench from the plant when it was used initially, the residents requested the builder to shut it down.

The BWSSB, which raised objection to the construction of the township, had apprised the planning and development authorities concerned of the potential pollution hazard from the township to the Arkavati river and the reservoir.

In September 1997, the BWSSB served a legal notice on the builder to stop construction, and requested the KSPCB to withdraw the clearance given to the builder. Construction, however, went ahead, and buyers of apartments in the township were kept in the dark about the developments.

The residents' dilemma is summed up by a elderly person: ``I invested my life's savings to come here, thinking that I was getting away from the City's mess. I thought I would lead a quiet life here. We never dreamt that we would land in such trouble.''

Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Section  : Southern States
Previous : Single file system from Oct. 15
Next     : Bangalore, a 'must-see city' for China's IT
           sector, says envoy