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Dal Lake chokes as funds are diverted

Dal Lake in Srinagar has become a virtual sewage dump although the central government has sunk several hundred crores of…

Dal Lake chokes as funds are diverted

(Photo: AFP)

Dal Lake in Srinagar has become a virtual sewage dump although the central government has sunk several hundred crores of rupees for its restoration.

Tourists can smell the stink of its waters during a shikara (boat) rides. The state government has miserably failed to give an effective lead to restoration work.

Now the High Court has stepped in to personally monitor the ongoing work and save the lake from further degradation.

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According to reports, the Centre sanctioned more than `360 crore in the past few years for restoring the pristine beauty of the lake, but expenditure of that huge amount does not reflect in the water body. The Centre granted `245 crore for this purpose in 1997 and another `112 crore in 2004, besides various other funds but nobody knows where the money has sunk.

The state government prepared a `299 crore project in 2008-09 for development of the lake and piecemeal steps were taken for execution of the works. The High Court last month came down heavily on the Lakes and Waterways Development Authority (LAWDA) and other officers and agencies for their "lax approach" towards preservation of the lake. Hearing a public interest litigation, the court took serious view of the increasing pollution and encroachments in and around the water body.

Not only the government agencies but the civil society is also responsible for gradual decay of the lake. Raw sewage of hotels and houses alongside flows into the lake. Moreover, the sewage discharged from more than 1,200 houseboats is a major cause of pollution.

A few years ago, Roorkee University prepared a detailed project report of the health of the lake in which it was pointed out that the continuous flow of sewage was the biggest cause of pollution. LAWDA claims it has laid nearly 250 km of sewerage network but it clearly does not function.

Moreover, the agency appears more inclined towards purchasing costly machinery and equipment for dredging weeds from the lake but is making half-hearted efforts to check flow of sewage and remove the encroachers who have shrunk the lake area.

The Roorkee University report states that sewage from the catchment area was a significant contributor to the nutrient load of the lake. About 132 tonne of inorganic nitrogen gets trapped in the lake system.

The total phosphorous inflow is about 156 tonne of which 4.50 tonne is from nonpoint sources within the lake and rest comes from the peripheral areas.

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