Widening of pond at Cubbon Park

BANGALORE: As a part of the beautification process, Public Works Department (PWD) is undertaking the project of constructing a new lake at Cubbon Park.  This project began on January 20. Shiv Shankar, Assistant Engineer, PWD, says, “The purpose of constructing this is to de-silt and infiltrate the rain water that is accumulated here. We are trying to dredge the pond which existed earlier.”The PWD also plans to construct steps around the lake with granite.  The upcoming lake is named after Bengaluru Karaga. It is called Karagada Kunte. “Karaga festival in Bangalore begins from this particular place. This is the reason the department planned to name the upcoming lake after Karaga,” adds Shankar.The rain water from Cubbon park will be channeled to flow towards the Karagada Kunte. The project of constructing the lake was sanctioned in November 2011 by PWD for the public welfare and beautification of the park. On the budget sanctioned, Shankar further adds that  `20 lakhs have been invested in the construction of the lake. “We are planning to complete the work before the onset of the monsoon in the city. Although there are around 25 to 35 workers employed for this project it will still require approximately another three months for its completion,” he says. Appreciating the initiative taken by the PWD, Chethan M C, a visitor at Cubbon park says, “This is a good step towards the beautification of the park. For a long time the park has not witness any developments.” Meanwhile the authorities confirmed that the trees in the Park will not be affected by the development works.  Shankar also mentions that off late there has been lot of deforestation due to heavy development works in the city. He hopes such work will hel in restoring the nature in long run.