Lakes of Bendakaluru

Satellite view: Esri, Maxar, Earthstar Geographics

Chikkabellanduru Kere

ಚಿಕ್ಕ ಬೆಳ್ಳಂದೂರು ಕೆರೆ

Also called Chikka Bellanduru Lake

Kere, a large tank, in Gunjur ward, Bengaluru East

See it on the map
Size
49.8 acresAbout 28 football pitches
Rank by size
176th largestOf 1,621 lakes that still exist
Valley
Koramangala-Challaghatta
Who looks after it
BDABangalore Development Authority
Water quality
Not tested for water quality yet
Built over
1% of the lakeSatellite, 2021. The 2018 survey found 9% encroached.
Campaign
Residents are organising here

Through the years

Nothing on record for 1904 to 1944, 1946 to 1954, 1956 to 1979 and 1981 to 1983.

The records listed below, drawn on one line from 1903 to 2026.

  1. 1903

    Built

    As the 2018 lake survey records it

    See source

  2. 1945

    On the survey map

    See source

  3. 1955

    On the U.S. Army map

    Compiled from Survey of India maps of 1945-46

    See source

  4. 1980

    On the survey map

    See source

  5. 1984-2021

    Held water in 21 of 34 years

    Water in 4% of all satellite passes, 1984-2024

    9% of its water area has since gone dry; 2% is new water

    4 years not counted: the satellite saw under half the lake

    Floating weed looks like dry land to this record, so a weed-covered year can read as dry

    See sourceSee source

  6. 2017-2018

    In the water bodies census, not marked as encroached

    This census's status marks are often wrong

    See source

  7. 2017-2025

    Mostly plants or weed in most years

    Floating weed shows as crops or grass here, not as water

    About three in four of these readings are right, so trust what holds for several years

    See source

  8. 2018

    Still there in the 2018 lake survey

    9% encroached, muddy, 75.5 acres surveyed

    See source

  9. 2025-2026

    Mostly floating weed after the monsoon; mostly dry or built in the dry season

    After monsoon, Oct 2025 to Dec 2025

    • 24% open water
    • 51% floating weed
    • 26% dry or built

    Dry season, Mar 2026 to May 2026

    • 6% open water
    • 4% floating weed
    • 91% dry or built
    See source

How big it is

The records disagree on its size, so each measure is shown.

Drawn outline
49.8 acres

About 28 football pitches

See source
2018 lake survey
75.5 acres

About 43 football pitches

See source
End to end
753 m

The longest straight line across the outline

See source
Deepest point, 2018
3.5 m
See source
Kind of lake
Kere, a large tank
See source

How clean the water is

State pollution board
Not tested by the state board
How it looked in 2018
Muddy
See source

How much is built over

Built inside the outline
1%

From satellite land cover, 2021

See source
Encroached area, 2017
11.6 acres

Reported by the state legislature’s committee on lake encroachment

See source
Encroached by

Farmers and the public

See source
Taken for

Plantation, temple & road

See source
Where it is encroached

On the south side

See source
Dumped in it

Garbage, construction debris & burned waste

See source
Other problems noted

Religious Activities

See source
Land record maps
See source
Land within 500 m

25% built, 24% crops, 23% trees, 19% shrubs, 6% grass, 2% bare ground

From satellite land cover, 2021

See source

Who looks after it

Looked after by
Bangalore Development Authority

BDA

See source
City lake page

Open its page on the city’s lake monitoring site

See source
Campaign pages
See source

Where its water comes from and goes

Valley
Koramangala-Challaghatta

The river basin its water drains to

See source
Water comes from
See source
Overflows into

Gunjuruplaya Kere

See source
Catchment
12.4 km²

The land that drains into it

See source
Fed by, 2018 survey

Rain

See source
Built parts, 2018 survey

2 inlet drains, 1 overflow weir, no sluice gates, 2 culverts, no check dams and no islands

See source
Used for, 2018 survey

Cattle feeding

See source

What lives here

Birds recorded
82 species

Most seen: Indian Pond-Heron, Green Bee-eater, Common Myna, Large-billed Crow and House Crow.

442 sightings, mostly from birdwatchers

See source
All wildlife recorded
82 species

442 records, 2016 to 2025

See source
Photographed on iNaturalist
2 times

2 species, 2 confirmed by other naturalists.

Most seen: Flamboyant and Indian Peafowl.

Last seen Apr 2025

See source
Animals seen, 2018 survey

Birds and butterflies

See source
Water plants, 2018 survey

Emergent

See source
Weed cover, 2018 survey

Partial

See source

Around it

Around it in 2018

Agriculture, vacant land, plantation, cement factory & temple

See source

Photos

No photos of it on Wikimedia Commons yet.

Where it is

Ward 50
Gunjur

ಗುಂಜೂರು

Bengaluru East corporation, Mahadevapura assembly seat

See source
Village
Chikkabelandur

Varthuru hobli, Bengaluru East taluk, Bengaluru Urban district

See source
Land survey numbers

9 (Chikkabellanduru), 63 (Mulluru)

See source
Height above sea level
879 m
See source
Coordinates

12.9126° N, 77.7191° E

See source

Read more

OpenStreetMap
See source
Its number in each record
ATREE lake map
111
2018 lake survey
BUBEVRckb_kr1-522
Lake Development Authority
LDA085
KGIS tank map
632
Water bodies census
2/12/002/276600/1302821/003
City lake monitoring site
180