Desilting of Ooty lake begins, activists call for action against polluting businesses along Kodappamund Channel

Efforts to desilt Ooty lake and boat house to restore water quality and prevent pollution, with community involvement.

The PWD-Water Resources Department (WRD) is undertaking the desilting of the Ooty lake and boat house, as efforts to clean up the polluted water body gains momentum.

According to officials from the department, the storage capacity of the Ooty lake has reduced by around 30 per cent since the early 1990s, due to the build up of silt and debris at the bottom of the lake bed. The water body, which used to supply drinking water to Udhagamandalam town at one point in its history, has since become denuded with waste and sewage dumped into the channel – the Kodappamund that feeds the lake.

To restore the Ooty lake, funds amounting to ₹10 crore was sanctioned by the Special Area Development Programme. As part of this effort, the Kodappamund Channel, from near Kotagiri Road to the Farmers’ Market, ATC Junction and the Ooty Bus Stand were all cleaned and desilted.

Scientists were also called in to help assess steps that could be taken to clean the lake and boat house. In October, equipment to keep the lake clear of plastic and debris was inaugurated at ₹1.2 crore. It was also announced that desilting would be undertaken at ₹7.5 crore.

Officials expressed the hope that the desilting of the lake as well as the cleaning up of the Kodappamund Channel would help prevent inundation of low-lying areas with rainwater during spells of heavy rain.

Local citizens’ rights groups, while welcoming the initiative, said that unless steps to severely clampdown on residences and businesses dumping sewage and waste into the Kodappamund Channel were undertaken, that the problem of the Ooty lake becoming polluted would continue to persist.

“Waste from the Ooty market, shops, hotels, resorts as well as residential areas are routinely dumped along the course of the Kodappamund Channel. Till this is stopped, which can only happen with the will of the Nilgiris district administration and the co-operation of the municipality, efforts of cleaning the lake will have to be undertaken every few years, so that tourism can continue at the lake. On the other hand, there is almost no discernible positive impact for local communities or wildlife that will continue to have to use a highly polluted water body,” said an activist.