Can MLA Kamath Work out Magic to Develop Gujjarakere Lake into a Tourist Spot?

Can MLA Vedavyas Kamath work out Magic to Develop Gujjarakere Lake into a Tourist Spot?

Mangaluru: Many ministers, MP’s, MLA’s and MCC Mayors during the last so many years had promised to turn Gujjarakere into something good, but all in vain. The last person to develop and give assurances of developing Gujjarakere was MLA J R Lobo- but his recent defeat in the election has nullified his efforts. So now it’s the turn of the newly elected MLA Vedavyas Kamath to take up the project which has been left unfinished by other politicians. Speaking after inspecting Gujjarakere and holding talks with the officials and engineers from the Mangaluru City Corporation (MCC), MLA Kamath has promised that Gujjarakere will be developed as a tourist spot by year-end. But the residents in the vicinity of Gujjarakere are skeptical saying that they will only believe when the project materializes?

MLA Kamath had said “We want to develop Gujjarakere as a tourist spot. Sewage from an underground drainage (UGD) is leaking into the lake water. I have asked MCC officials to plug the seepage of sewage into the lake. A walking track will be developed around the lake. Efforts will be made to check rainwater from entering the lake. After taking opinion from NITK experts, the officials will take measures to check the growth of weeds in the lake.” This was said by the MLA on 29 July, but the residents say that until now, they have not seen any officials coming and doing any inspection or any start up work.

Few residents surrounding the Gujjarakere and Arekere premises allege that the sewage network has been polluting wells in the region for the last 36 years, and speaking to Team Mangalorean said, ” In spite of the District Consumer Disputes Redressal Forum directing the authorities to set right the sewage system in and around Gujjarakere and Arekere to check pollution in open wells, no efforts have been made so far”. One resident said, ” “As per the present work, the sewage from Gujjarakere and Jeppu Market will reach the Mulihithlu wet well. However, the work on pumping line from the wet well has not commenced. There is all the possibility of overflow of sewage with the new connections. If the sewage lines are upgraded in the Arakere region, then the pollution in the wells could be checked. However, the authorities have failed to initiate any measure in this regard”.

Another resident said, “To find a solution to the problems of seepage of sewage into wells, the MCC should ensure that only rainwater flows into the stormwater drains. The UGD system should be upgraded”. Residents also said that years ago, the Mangalore City Corporation (MCC) promised to renovate Gujjarakere Lake in Jeppu, complete with a jogging track with interlocking tiles, steps, seating arrangements on all sides, and diversion of sewage joining it. However, instead of the jogging track, the lake is now full of water hyacinth, with neighbours complaining that all the money spent on it has gone down the drain. Seating arrangements and jogging track were nowhere in sight. The lake has turned out to be a dump yard, multiple drainage connections lead to it and a breeding ground for mosquitoes.

Every year we hear that crores or lakhs of rupees have been sanctioned for the Gujjarakere development, but we have not seen any development. So where has the sanctioned money gone? Bet, into politicians and MLA’s pockets! Years ago, about Rs. 2 crores was sanctioned for the modernisation and protection of this rectangular lake, but today, to approach the tank one has to cross bushes, weeds and heaps of dumped mud. So much so that some people unhesitatingly find it a fit place to ease themselves.

Raghu Shetty, yet another resident speaking to Team Mangalorean said, “Every time they make plans, later construction is not well planned. The amount of money spent on this lake has gone waste. This was once a holy place; today drainage water from nearby buildings ends here. Even the steps leading to the lake have cracks, and part of it had collapsed.

Gujjarakere is spread across 3.43 acre and was a source of drinking water in the past and associated with the religious ceremonies of the nearby Mangaladevi Temple and Marigudi temples. But now, its a HISTORY? Only when you see it You will believe it, under what condition the lake is? So until MLA V Kamath’s dream of developing Gujjarakere into a tourist spot, we all have to keep our fingers crossed and be happy when the place ACTUALLY becomes a tourist spot. But if the money sanctioned for the project is swallowed by our corrupt politicians and MCC officials even before the project starts or finishes, then the project will be left to the next elected MLA?