Agara Lake
| Agara Lake | |
|---|---|
| Agaram Lake | |
.jpg) 2016 | |
  Agara Lake | |
| Location | Bangalore |
| Group | Varthur lake series[1] |
| Coordinates | 12°55′16″N 77°38′28″E / 12.921°N 77.641°E |
| Type | Lake |
| Catchment area | Surface runoff from urban surroundings and overflow discharge from Madiwala Lake.[1] |
| Managing agency | Karnataka State Forest Department, since 2018[1] |
| Built | 8-9th century |
| Surface area | 80 acres (32 ha)[1] |
| Average depth | 6.5–9.8 ft (2.0–3.0 m)[1] |
| Shore length1 | 2.8 km (1.7 mi) |
| Islands | 1 |
| References | [1] |
| 1 Shore length is not a well-defined measure. | |
Agara lake is an 80-acre lake located in Agara, Bangalore. It is part of the Varthur lake series. Madiwala Lake is upstream while Bellandur Lake is downstream. Inter-lake connections have seen fragmentation and urbanisation.
Agara Lake is one of the most well maintained lakes of Bangalore.[2] At the inflow end there is a partitioned constructed wetland and a sediment basin with a sluice. The lake is surrounded by a walking and cycling track. There is a park at the north end. An immersion tank has been built here. A storm water drain or rajakaluve flows immediately alongside the lake on its left side. The lake is surrounded by roads on all sides.
Description
[edit]The lake dates back to at least the 8-9th century.[3][4]
The lake is filled by overflowing water from Madivala lake, the surrounding catchment area,[1] and a number of rajakaluves.[3] Surplus water traditionally drained into Bellandur Lake.[3] There is a storm water drain or rajakuluve between Bellandur and Agara lakes. The Agara-Bellandur region or wetlands provides an area for the primary outflow of Agara to flow towards Bellandur Lake via a stream network.[5] This connection has seen fragmentation and urbanization.[3] Land use changes from the 1970s have resulted in a decrease in surrounding water bodies.[3]
From 1990s onwards the surroundings of the lake began to see construction.[3] From traditionally being a community lake for those nearby including Agara village, the lake largely became a recreational public space.[3]
In 2007 the lake was privatised. Following protests against the privatisation, the lease of the lake was cancelled. The private firm then filed a case against the administration.[3] In 2012, the High Court directed a citizen group to manage the lake.[1] A citizen group, the Agara Lake Protection and Management Society, was formed in 2013.[1]
In 2004 restoration work was done on the lake by BDA and the forest department. Citizen initiatives to keep the lake in shape have spanned at least four years.[6] In 2018, with a ₹16 crore (equivalent to ₹33 crore or US$4.0 million in 2023) grant from the state government, the Karnataka Lake Conservation and Development Authority began a de-weeding and desilting program. Surplus silt was used to increase the height of the encircling bunds.[7] The lake has an immersion tank or kalyani that is disconnected from the main lake.[8] The lake is fenced and surrounded by roads on all sides.[3] A park has been created at one end and a walking path encircles the lake.[3]
At the inflow end the lake has a constructed wetland covering 9 acres.[1] Here permeable retention walls create partitioned areas.[1] The partitioned areas allow time for silt to settle and the permeable walls act as filters.[1] Before this system, a manual sluice gate had been installed to control inflow into the lake from a sedimentation area.[1]
In 2018 bird watchers spotted 30 species of birds including Scaly-breasted munia and Red-naped ibis. A decrease in bird numbers was attributed to a number of factors.[9] Fishing rights have been granted to select fisherfolk.[10]
References
[edit]- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Waterbody Rejuvenation – A Compendium of Case Studies (PDF), Consortium for DEWATS Dissemination (CDD) Society, Bengaluru, December 2019, pp. 68–75
- ^ "A 'thousand lakes' once fed now-parched Bengaluru".
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j D'Souza, R.; Nagendra, H. (2011). "Changes in Public Commons as a Consequence of Urbanization: The Agara Lake in Bangalore, India". Environmental Management. 47 (5): 840–850. doi:10.1007/s00267-011-9658-8. ISSN 0364-152X. PMID 21431444. S2CID 25080728.
- ^ Sayeed, Vikhar Ahmed (10 July 2022). "Where are Bengaluru's lakes?". Frontline. The Hindu. Retrieved 4 November 2022.
- ^ Ramachandra, T. V.; S, Vinay; Aithal, Bharath H. (August 2015), Detrimental landuse changes in Agara Belllandur wetland, ENVIS Technical Report 95, Energy & Wetlands Research Group, Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore
- ^ Kaushik, Tushar (10 April 2017). "Four year long citizens' drive leads to Bengaluru lake clean-up". The New Indian Express. Retrieved 1 November 2022.
- ^ Menezes, Naveen (17 January 2018). "How a group of citizen activists saved Bengaluru's Agara lake". The Economic Times. Retrieved 20 March 2018.
- ^ Javali, Zahid H, ed. (14–20 September 2018). "Wanted: Volunteers to manage idol immersions at Agara Lake". Garden City Plus. Vol. 5, no. 40. Residents Watch. p. 2 – via Issuu.
- ^ "Migratory birds to Agara lake see a drop". Deccan Herald. 2 July 2018. Retrieved 1 November 2022.
- ^ Rao, Mohit M. (13 November 2020). "The link between Bengaluru's lakes, livelihoods and local memories". Mongabay-India. Retrieved 1 November 2022.
Further reading
[edit]- Isaac, Tanya (2020), Bacterial community analysis of seven polluted lakes in Bangalore, India (Thesis), Degree: BSc in Public Health, Tulane University
- Satish, Chapadgaonkar Vedika (2022). "Analyzing Commons On The Bellandur Lake Edge". CEPT - Portfolio. CEPT University.
- News
- "Residents don't want an STP on Agara lake bed". The Hindu. 28 June 2014. ISSN 0971-751X.
- "Treatment Plant at Agara Lake Opposed". The New Indian Express. 29 June 2014.
- Bora, Sangeeta (27 July 2015). "The Agara lake takes the cake!". Deccan Chronicle.
- "Bellandur-Agara Lake encroachment: Warrant issued against Mantri Techzone MD by NGT". The News Minute. 6 April 2018.
- Iyer, Shravan Regret (16 July 2016). "Bengaluru: Madiwala, Agara lakes to become biodiversity parks". Deccan Chronicle.
- Athrady, Ajith (4 January 2021). "Lake pollution: NGT says Biodiversity parks should be set up along periphery of lakes". Deccan Herald.
- Madhukar, Jayanthi (15 September 2013). "A girl, a boy and a rooster". Bangalore Mirror.
- Agara Bellandur region/wetland
- T V, Ramachandra; Aithal, Bharath H; S, Vinay; Lone, Aamir Amin (May 2013), Conservation of Bellandur Wetlands (PDF), ENVIS Technical Report No 55, Energy & Wetlands Research Group, Centre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore
- Ramachandra, T V; S, Vinay; Bhat, Sudarshan; Settur, Bharath; Aithal, Bharath H. (December 2017), Unabated Violations in Agara Bellandur Wetland (PDF), ENVIS Technical Report 134, Environmental Information System, CES, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore
External links
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