Neyaz Elahi
Srinagar, April 6: Dal Lake, once the pride of Kashmir and a symbol of natural splendor, now lies sullied and suffocating—its waters clogged with weeds, its shores encroached upon, and its soul slowly dying. While much of the public discourse has focused on surface-level cleaning operations and cosmetic interventions, the rot runs deeper right into the corridors of power.
The Lakes and Waterways Development Authority (LAWDA), now renamed the Lakes Conservation and Management Authority (LCMA), has for years been entrusted with the responsibility of preserving and restoring Dal Lake. But the question now is: what have they really done? And more importantly, at what cost?
A long trail of bureaucrats has occupied the top chair at LCMA, each making grand promises of revival, only to leave behind a more degraded lake than they inherited. The time has come to move beyond rhetoric. These officials must be held accountable not just for their inaction, but for their possible role in enabling the destruction of one of Kashmir’s most treasured natural assets.
There are growing calls for an independent inquiry into how successive CEOs and senior officers of LAWDA/LCMA functioned. Their personal and family bank accounts must be scrutinized, their property holdings evaluated, and any disproportionate assets thoroughly investigated. There are credible reports of massive wealth accumulation by certain officers allegedly at the cost of Dal Lake’s health.
Why is the lake still filthy despite hundreds of crores spent in the name of conservation? Why are trucks carrying construction materials allowed to move freely through the lake’s protected green belt, under the nose of enforcement staff? These are not random oversights, they point to a deeper nexus of corruption, neglect, and complicity.
Executive engineers and enforcement officers who were supposed to stop illegal construction have often turned a blind eye. Many of them, despite being well aware of the rampant violations, have allegedly chosen silence over action, drawing salaries while the lake they swore to protect continues to die.
Cleaning Dal Lake is not a Herculean task—it is, in fact, quite manageable with the right intent. The real issue is the absence of will, masked by bureaucratic doublespeak and token efforts. It’s high time for a forensic audit of LCMA’s functioning, a crackdown on officer wealth, and a thorough investigation into how environmental protection became a playground for profiteering.
Dal Lake doesn’t just need de-weeding machines. It needs justice. And it needs it now. [KNT]
