Electronics City

By Ranadeep ChakrabortyThe Maragondanahalli lake’s transformation in E-City is testimony to how even one man’s effort can turn around the look and feel of an entire neighbourhood; Venugopal Kumpalli is truly an inspirationVenugopal Kumpalli (37), a resident of, would regularly pass Bellandur. When the lake there was at the peak of infamy, frothing and ablaze, it bothered him. He didn’t want a similar fate for the Maragondanahalli lake in his neighbourhood, and decided to clean it himself. The three months that followed where not easy. He had to buy equipment with his own money, and even received threats from local drunks. But when his efforts started showing, people joined and realised they indeed had a beautiful lake in their backyard.Covered under dense foliage, the Maragondanahalli la­ke was never thought of as a sight to behold. If anything, it had become an open-air bar. The otherwise quiet and safe Neotown road had been serving as a bar for those who couldn’t afford better. Drunken arguments had become commonplace here.“One of my main concerns was that the area was turning into a filthy place and the only thing I had in mind was that I had to bring a change in the crowd. Previously, only drunkards used to come here; now, families come,” he said.Venugopal was, literally, a one-man army as he took on charge to clean the premises of the lake after he was permitted by the Hulimangala Panchayat. “People never question when someone throws a bottle in the lake, but when you go and clean the lake, you get asked plenty of questions. I had to take permission to clean and develop the lake,” he said.But the condition of the lake was worse than what he had imagined. He even bought a bush-cutter to cut the dense foliage. “I bought the machine from Chickpet for around Rs13,000, including other accessories such as a log cutter, a hedge trimmer, a bush cutting triangularblade and a grass cutter string,” he said.For a person who has always been into embed systems and has spent most of his time learning technological stuff, learning the mechanism of the bush-cutter machine was not easy. “I had to learn the gear ratio along with how the machine really works. I also learnt how to repair it if it breaks down,” said the 37-year-old.He cleaned the bushes for a stretch of 400 to 500 metres in three months, all by himself till other residents realised that they also should lend a helping hand. “Most of the work was done by me and then when people realised that there was a lake so close to their house and reviving it would do them a world of good, they started helping me,” he said.Interestingly, before adults joined in to help, the children had arrived.“I thought of involving children of the society to attract the attention of their parents. So I gave them colour sprinklers that are used during holi to colour the tree trunks and that drew attention of the parents too.” But within all the good work that he did, he had to go through a lot of difficulties including a confrontation with a drunkard who threatened him. “I cutting the bushes in the evening when a drunk milkman came to stop me. Without even a warning, he just came over to attack. I had to call it a day so as not to rile him anymore. Then I went and filed a complaint with the police, and continued with the work,” he said.Now that the entire stretch as been cleaned, the residents felicitated him on Saturday and also went on a drive to plant saplings along the stretch that would indeed make the lake worth visiting. “Ever since the lake side has been cleared, the residents have been gathering here to take a breath of fresh air and that is a victory for me,” Venugopal said.