Only a year after the Odisha Construction Corporation limited (OCCl) cleared up the duckweed infestation from the famous Bindu Sagar lake near the lord lingaraj temple here, the lake is grappling with the same problem all over again.
With only a few more days to go for lord lingaraj’s Chandan Yatra, where the lord gets to the lake for ‘Chapa Khela’ (a boating tour on the lake), the lake is in a pathetic condition. The yatra will begin on ‘Akshay Tritiya’ of Hindu calendar and continue for 22 days.
Experts predict problems in boating due to the high-density weeds present in the water. It is not only the duckweed, but also the black and stinking water that makes the lake and its surrounding unhygienic.
Not only does the lord use the water for His daily rituals, scores of people come here to offer Shraddha (Hindu ritual performed for one’s deceased ancestors, especially parents) and take a dip in the lake as the water of the lake is considered holy.
It may be noted that the Urban Development Department had attempted to clear the lake of duckweed infestation using weed killers and carried out dredging towards this end in 2013. While the Drainage Division was supposed to carry out the task, it was handed over to the OCCl which finished the task in 2014 at a cost of Rs 1.76 crores. However, thing are back to square one only within a year.
The Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC) under which jurisdiction, the 1,300 feet long and 700 feet wide lake comes, wants to steer clear of any trouble.
“The BMC had contracted the Drainage Division to do the job. The Drainage Division has got the job done by OCCl as per contract,” said Chief Engineer of the Drainage Division Brundaban Bastia.
As if the pathetic condition of the lake was not enough, the Jagati (a seat in the lake where the lord goes to remain immersed in sandalwood water) has also developed cracks. last year, a servitor got a hand broken as he got trapped there. The walls of Jagati are so weak that they might crash anytime.
The administration now plans to spend some more money and get another round of weed clearance and repair done. “We have done the necessary measurements and plan to repair the Jagati and clear the duckweed infestation from the lake before Chandan Yatra,” said BMC JE Jagannath Patnaik. The BMC Mayor also echoed the same rhetoric of another round of weed clearance.
“Earlier, we had cleared the lake from duckweed infestation. Now, we are going to spend Rs 3 lakh to repair the Jagati and clear the lake from weeds before the Chandan yatra,” said BMC Mayor Anant Narayan Jena.