Fayaz Bukhari
SRINAGAR, May 3: Massive siltation over past six decades and construction of Ningli bund in Sopore area, to raise the water level of Wullar lake has submerged dozens of villages around the lake and atleast 200 villages in the periphery of the lake are facing threat in near future.
Ghulam Qadir, 65, resident of Sumbal in North Kashmir says that no dredging of Wullar lake has been done in the past six decades and neither the bunds around the lake have been strengthened since their construction since early 1959.
Qadir said that during his life time, the Government and people have encroached the Wullar lake leading to decrease in its water carrying capacity. He said that over the decades, government and locals have planted trees inside the lake and its area has squeezed.
Residents said that the Government constructed a bund in Ningli Sopore two years ago and it was an ill conceived project. They said that the objective of the Government was to raise the water level of the lake by constructing the bund to provide water reservoir for the downstream hydro-electric power projects but it has inundated villages in the peripheries of the lake.
They said that after last year’s floods the water is not receding from villages and at places water logging still persists in the villages around the Wullar lake.
Abdul Majid, a resident of Hajan said that 75 per cent of the paddy land is water logged since the last year’s floods and water is not receding. He said that there will be no paddy cultivation in this water logged agricultural land which will ultimately lead to food crisis in these areas in near future.
The villagers said that their orchards are even waterlogged which will ultimately lead to death of the fruit trees if the water doesn’t recede.
The villages which are getting affected are Banyari, Mukhdoomyari, Badwan, Prang, Malikpora, Khusripora, Hajan, Naidkhai, Gund Jehangir, Shilvat, Tarzoo, Haritar and several villages in Sopore area.
Residents said that water from Jhelum which used to enter Wullar lake is not entering it due to rise in water level of Wullar. They said that with the slight downpour the villages around river Jhelum from Sumbal to Sopore face water logging.
Follow our WhatsApp channel