Residents living amid foul stench from Banda Cheruvu

East Anandbagh: The locals around the Miryalguda Lake, also known as the Banda Cheruvu, in East Anandbagh are a worried lot. Irked by the stench from the lake, many residents regret that they bought or constructed houses there. The foul smell from the lake has been increasing, leading to a breeding ground for mosquitoes, particularly in the evenings, causing inconvenience to the people visiting temples and markets around the lake.

Explaining the situation of the lake, T Dashrath, Deputy Commissioner for Malkajgiri, says, "Entomology and irrigation departments have been taking preventive measures in and around the lake. Spraying and fogging is done fortnightly, and soon we are going to start cleaning up of the lake once the rains are stopped."

However, the locals say that fogging and spraying was not done. Vijay Narendra, an independent house owner, who lives a few meters away from the lake, bought the house a few years ago. Now, he is regretting his decision, and has put up his house for sale.

"All the sewage waste from nearby colonies is being dumped in the lake, which has killed the lake ecosystem completely. All you can find is froth and dead animals floating on the lake. We are suffering from stench and mosquitoes a lot. Both my kids suffered from dengue, which cost us around Rs 3 lakh. All the complaints made to the civic authorities have been neglected completely," said Vijay Narendra.

Besides sewerage treatment, the lake does not have boundaries demarcated or any safety regulation signs. The lake also faces heavy garbage dumping from the temples and nearby locals who extensively dump garbage alongside the lakeshore.

Subha Raghunath, a local resident, says, "The stench and forth from the Lake is the main cause of mosquitoes. Locals do not use garbage bins, instead dump the garbage in the Lake.