Scores of fish found dead at Ambazari as untreated sewage continues to flow into the lake

Nagpur: Scores of dead fish have been spotted in Ambazari lake in the last two days, thanks to the apathy of Nagpur Municipal Corporation (NMC) towards preventing of pollution in the water body.
Activist NL Sawarkar said fish dying indicates high level of pollution in the lake. “I go for walking in Ambazari garden every day. I started to witness dead fish floating near the bank of the lake since Thursday. Even the colour of the water has turned blackish. Foul smell is emanating from it,” he said.

Morning walkers Ramesh Admane and Ram Munje said Ambazari lake needed protection through immediate steps. “Large quantity of untreated sewage flows into the lake from MIDC Hingna side. A large numbers of birds and cattle also depend upon the water of the lake. Sewage should be treated completely before being released into the lake,” they said.

TOI has been reporting about death of fish in the lake since 2014. Most times fish die during summer but sometimes in winter too. NMC allows water of the lake to be taken for drinking and non-drinking purposes to MIDC Hingna, non-drinking purposes to CRPF Colony and Ambazari Swimming Pool.

Sawarkar added that industrial waste also flowed into the lake from industries in MIDC Hingna. “We have lodged complaints with NMC as well as Maharashtra Pollution Control Board (MPCB) many times but nothing happened. Untreated sewage and industrial waste continue to flow throughout the year. Whenever lake’s water starts to deplete, pollution increases causing fish to die,” he said.

Fishermen started to clear dead fishes from the lake from Friday to prevent foul smell. NMC officials said they would visit the lake and take immediate measures.

An MPCB official said fish may be dying due to various reasons. “Level of dissolved oxygen reduces with rise in temperature. Change in temperature also causes stress to aquatic life. Pollution can also be a reason. We test water of all lakes in the city twice a year. There is no high level of pollution in Ambazari as per reports,” the official said.

Nagpur Improvement Trust (NIT) has started construction of a 5 million litres per day sewage treatment plant (STP) along Nag river in Ambazari biodiversity park. “The plant being constructed with NEERI’s phytorid technology is expected to be ready in a year. With that untreated sewage will stop flowing into the lake,” an NIT official said.