Biotech for Cleaner Lakes

Bangalore's 'pensioner's paradise' tag got buried under the numerous steel and glass structures, traffic gridlocks and dwindling tree cover and the city acquired a new avatar of being India's very own silicon valley. Software movers and shakers such as NR Narayana Murthy and Azim Premji became household names.

However the biotechnology sector, though quite active in the city, somehow got eclipsed and could not come out of the shadows of IT sector. For those not studying biotechnology, their familiarity with the sector begins and ends with Biocon and its chief Kiran Mazumdar Shaw.

Ever heard of Nualgi Nano Biotech (NNB)? A chance encounter on NDTV site about this company made me sit up and watch. This Jayanagar-based biotech firm is helping Americans clean up their polluted lakes.

The news item describes NNB as 'a low profile biotech company' founded by Thothathri Sampathkumar and has cleared a 3-acre lake of weeds and algae and helped boost fish population. All it needed was 50 kg of Nualgi - a product invented and patented by the company.

The company's promoters describe Nualgi as a mix of micro nutrients in the form of nano particles including silica, iron and manganese, which triggers the rapid growth of a type of algae called diatoms (never mind the technical details and read on). The diatoms release oxygen through photosynthesis and it increases the dissolved oxygen level in water and thus keeps the pond clean. Diatoms converted into 'zooplanktons' provide food for the fish. One kilogram of Nualgi can treat four million litres of water!

To me it sounded too good to be true and as I was reading through the article numerous images and even smells of filthy lakes and rivers of our country came to my mind. I must confess that the Cooum river of Chennai and Bandra creek of Mumbai took the prime time space in my mind. It really beats me as to why their expertise was not used here in a big way.

Towards the end of the article it mentioned that in India it has been used in some lakes, mainly by fishermen to increase their catch. A Google search revealed that some of the Bangalore lakes treated with nualgi include Madivala Lake, Ulsoor Lake, Vengayyana Kere (KR Puram) and Puttenahalli Lake. Sadly only one press article I came across and that too by a financial newspaper The Mint in 2009. Nobody from the mainstream press seems to have woken up to it.

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Rumour Is the Key

The country was basking in the glory of Mary Kom's exploits at the Olympics and sports writers, columnists and TV anchors were taking us on guilt trips as to how we have neglected the northeast.

Then came the Independence Day and on that languid evening I first heard that the security guard of our office has 'fled' and people from northeast were fleeing the city fearing violence. To me it sounded as bizarre as saying that Martians have taken over Public Utility building and may soon invade Bangalore.

The guard mind you was a Bihari, but his family was settled in Assam. He no way had facial features like a person from northeast and his Hindi was chaste as those from the cow belt. At first I thought he had cooked up some funny story to bunk office.

Later on TV channels started airing footages of Bangalore city railway station, which resembled Mumbai VT during the beginning of school vacations. The fact that it happened on an Independence Day evoked memories of those infamous train journeys that happened during the 1947 partition. It left me wondering what was compelling these people to take a chance by travelling ‘sardine’ class for 50-plus hours to reach their hometowns. And I shudder to think as to what shape they are going to be after they reach their destination.

Assurances from state home minister, police officials and others did little to convince them. The state leaders, of course, have a very poor track record in protecting the lives and properties of minorities, hence they carry little conviction. But what actually surprised me was that the state currently has a police chief,  who hails from Mizoram, and even his words inspired little confidence.  

The exodus seems to be cutting across all class lines. As described earlier about that Bihari-Assamese guy, people from every state of northeast, cutting across religion, ethnic and economic strata seemed to be hopping on to the exodus bandwagon. Janitors, restaurant workers, hair stylists, students, techies and BPO employees all seem to have sensed some major unseen calamity was about to befall them if they remained in the city.

For the first time the ethnic strife in Assam between Bodos and Bangladeshi Muslims seem to having fallout in other parts of India. So far all ethnic strife in northeast were very localized events and drew little coverage in the national media. It first began with a protest rally called by a Muslim fringe group in Mumbai turning violent. There were some recent attacks on northeast origin people in Pune and later on a Tibetan in Mysore. These attacks also revealed the opaque perceptions the people from 'mainland' have regarding the communities in northeast.

But somehow all that no way provides answers to Bangalore exodus. Reports of threatening text messages, social networking site messages and inflammatory posters in the city seems to have more than succeeded in triggering this panic. There have been some incidents of stone throwing etc on the city outskirts. The most common rumour doing rounds is that Muslims in the city are waiting for Id to get over to carry out reprisal attacks on people from northeast. Another rumour is that of an inflammatory video on Assam violence is being circulated to incite Muslims. Many among those who were fleeing told newspapers that their parents back home in Assam want them back as they fear attacks in Bangalore. So it looks like there was rumour mongering in Assam also.

Who is behind all these rumours? How they are managing to get the numbers of northeast residents in the city to bombard them with threatening text messages? Why others are not getting these messages? These are early days to get answers to these questions, but needs to be thoroughly investigated. Another scary aspect is that this kind of selective targeting can in future happen with other communities.

When I came to Bangalore six years back what I found very striking was the presence of people from northeast in the city. I guess it was quite a new phenomenon, as during my earlier visit to the city in the nineties, I hardly came across anyone from that region. These new developments seem to be pushing the clock back. I am hoping this is a passing phase and the people who have fled the city will come back.

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