Rewalsar Lake water turns muddy

Tribune News Service

Mandi, April 18

A sudden change in the colour of waters of Rewalsar Lake in Mandi has surprised people here. The place is famous for its religious importance but the increasing pollution level in the lake water is worrying locals.

The lake water suddenly turned filthy yesterday and the locals are apprehensive. A local NGO, Development Action Group, has started a campaign to clean the lake and lifted water samples from the lake for testing to find out the actual cause of water turning muddy.

According to sources, there is rapid degradation in purity of lake water in the past few years because of the apathy of the district administration as well as locals, who failed to take effective measure to protect it.

The tourists visiting the lake prefer to feed fishes which also considered a big factor in degrading the water.

The district administration and locals are now trying to control the excessive feeding to fishes.

Naresh Kumar, president of the Development Action Group, said, “Today we have lifted water samples from lake for testing to find out its pollution level. We urge the district administration to make a proper plan to conserve it.”

This pace has religious importance for Hindus, Buddhists and Sikhs. There are three Buddhist monasteries at Riwalsar and a gurdwara. The lake also has three temples dedicated to Lord Krishna, Lord Shiva and sage Lomas.

The lake is shaped like a square with the shoreline of about 735 m. It’s about 1,360 m above the sea level.