Hyderabad: Amidst immersion, city greens root for conservation of lakes

Hyderabad : Despite the efforts of the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) revival of portable and baby ponds to ease Ganesh idols immersion, concerns arise over its effectiveness in preserving our lakes in the long term. While city residents rally to protect these vital water bodies, a prevailing lack of awareness and trust deficit between the government and citizens cast a shadow over the initiative.

Speaking to The Hans India, Madhulika Choudary, who leads Dhruvansh, taking care of Neknampur Lake, says, “The revival of baby ponds exclusively for Ganesh immersion falls short of meeting the city’s essential needs, as lakes play an integral role in the daily lives of residents. Beyond Ganapati festivities, Hyderabad hosts a multitude of festivals such as Bathukamma, Durga Puja, Chaath Puja, and somber rituals for mourning family members, creating a year-round reliance on these water bodies. Baby ponds, while a temporary remedy, pose challenges as their water, containing religious paraphernalia and other materials, is eventually drained back into the lakes GHMC seeks to protect. These solutions offer little long-term benefit.”

GHMC’s commitment to lake conservation must extend to safeguarding baby ponds from contaminating the lake waters, a crucial aspect often overlooked in their efforts. Failure to do so renders their conservation attempts futile. Further, the unchecked mixing of water not only undermines these efforts but also poses a threat to aquatic biodiversity, necessitating urgent and comprehensive measures.

Talking about the Neknampur Lake, Madhulika Choudary, says, “While we have taken the proactive step of erecting the immersion pond at the weir, thereby preventing the return of polluted water to the lake, it’s essential to recognise that this is not the case for other lakes. In many instances, immersion ponds are integrated into the lake itself, resulting in the drainage of contaminated water back into the lake.” Noted environmentalist, K Purushottam Reddy, says, “A significant trust deficit between citizens and the government regarding lake conservation persists, highlighting the need for enhanced efforts by authorities to safeguard these critical natural resources. Regrettably, the introduction of baby ponds appears to exacerbate rather than alleviate the problem, leading to heightened pollution and contamination of our lakes. The deteriorating water quality in our city’s lakes underscores a concerning dereliction of duty in preserving these indispensable environmental assets, which must be responsibly preserved for the benefit of future generations.”

Despite the construction of baby ponds, most of the residents prefer to immerse their idols in lakes which is polluting and contaminating the lakes. There is a lack of effective monitoring by the officials as idols of various kinds are being immersed in these ponds. Manognya Reddy, a volunteer from Kapra Lake Revival Group, says, “There is a lack of adequate public awareness. Although this is a temporary measure, we have no other option.

We need to move forward with this idea. However, one can notice the immersion of the Plaster of Paris (PoP) and clay idols in the lakes without any distinction. At Kapra Lake, it is a mixed response, however, efforts are being made to the best of our ability to preserve it.”