Water Resources and NLCO
Allah has created this world with accurate balances and there is no fault in His creation. He has made this world with ecological balances so that His crown of creation lives and breathes in a conducive and pure environment. This world has been made a dwelling for us with its forests, waters, springs, deserts, mountains, oceans, rivers, seas canals, grasslands, moors, plains, highlands, and plateaus. The Holy Qur’an says in Surah Zariyaat, Verse: 47-48:
With power and skill did we construct the firmament: For it is We Who creates the vastness of space and We have spread out the spacious earth: How excellently we do spread out!”
The Valley of Kashmir with its majestic mountains, meadows, rivers, moors, glens, springs, lakes, raw nature, lush green fields and streams attracts people of the world to tour the valley every year. We are lucky that it is not only an abode and fertile source of our sustenance, but it is a place for our development of physical and mental powers. The beauty of its landscape, the rhythm of its seasonal changes that takes plac during the year, the phenomena of the formation of clouds and the falling of rain, the grandeur of its vast range of forests makes it amply clear that Allah has created our Valley in its true proportions.
Life springs from water. Without water we can’t imagine of a story called life. As Allah says in the Holy Quran, “We have created every living thing out of water”, Surah Anbiya verse 31. As the famous English poet John Keats says `beauty is truth, truth beauty that is all’. The same way ‘water is life, life water that is all’.
Without water, our valley is not what it is known for. The fabric of this place is woven with elements like streams, rivers, waterfalls, lakes and other natural water bodies. Water bodies and springs are not just the backbone of our tourist economy, but they sustain the beauty of our valley and protract us. The lush beauty of our great gardens strewn across the valley owes its origin to springs. One part of our beauty is composed by the raw and wild beauty of mountains and jungles and the other part is full of water bodies.
Despite being blessed by such a great thing as this, how tragic is this on our part that we don’t and have not nourished this wealth, we don’t treasure it and guard it against perils. Our attitude towards our water bodies has been not just callous, but inhuman. The result is too evident to be ignored. What we are witnessing is a doom-casting scenario. Sudden and erratic weather changes, catastrophic climatic upheavals and a chaotic seasonal sequence – that sums up our story now. If it continues, the day is not far when we will be known as yet another desert.
The Nigeen Lakes Conservation Organization (NLCO) led by its Chairman Manzoor Ahmad Wangnoo and his team, prominent among them - Farooq Geelani, Former, Principal Conservator of Forests, Dr Mushtaq Margoob, and Er Ajaz Naqashbandi, Nadeem Qadiri - has understood the dangers of the assault we have carried against our water bodies; for the last so many years this organization has been working assiduously to conserve and restore the environment, especially focusing on reviving dying natural springs and lakes through its ‘Mission Ehsaas’ initiative, in collaboration with the Srinagar Municipal Corporation (SMC) and LCMA. The group tirelessly has been striving to restore almost dead springs, such as those in the Anchar and Khushalsar areas, providing clean water to communities, respecting the natural gifts, and promoting environmental responsiveness among the valley populace. This humble writer is also Member of the Core Group of NLCO.
NLCO is vigorously involved in restoration of springs, pride and pleasure to mention that,it has restored 12 dying springs so for, and some of which have been restored to a status where their water is confirmed safe for drinking after lab testing. This organization is also enthusiastically pursuing maintaining of clean environs of Dal Lake, Nigeen Lake and improve the ecological health of Anchar, Gilsar and Khushalsar.
NLCO collaborates with local communities, students, and other stakeholders to promote environmental illumination and ensure the long-term success of their conservation projects. It collaborates with governmental bodies like SMC and the LCMA, along with educational institutions and local residents, for a collective effort towards environmental preservation and force
The journey of the noble mission of reviving water bodies is a continuous process and NLCO aims to restore the fragile water ecosystems of Kashmir and create a healthier environment through community involvement and initiatives like promoting eco-consciousness among students and people at large. Thus pushing up for better and attractive tourist interest among the outsiders and thereby contribute in the economical dividends. The organization is rehabilitating the twin lakes of Gilsar and Khushalsar, focusing on clearing debris, revitalizing navigation paths, and improving water circulation. And for achieving the goals, government bodies like LC&MA and SMC have been supporting fully so for.
NLCO is striving hard before the government to install sewage treatment plants (STPs) to connect local drains, preventing further contamination of water bodies. By restoring springs and lakes, NLCO aims to alleviate long-standing health hazards caused by contaminated water in local communities. The effort shall contribute to a healthier ecosystem and the preservation of natural water resources in the face of climate change. NLCO’s restoring traditional navigation routes can promote cultural tourism and provide sustainable transportation within the city and can be at par with Malta and Mauritius and other foreign countries navigational transport facilities.
NLCO will continue its mission to revive water bodies and would always welcome people to join the initiative for environmental preservation and help to mitigate ill-effects of pollution and mitigate the impact of climate change. NLCO after accomplishing the mission of rejuvenating the water bodies in Srinagar, has to take up the struggle for uncontaminated and purified primary sources of water, the Jhelum River, and its tributaries and significant natural lakes like Wular Lake, Mansbal Lake, copious springs like Kokernag and Achabal and melting glaciers.
The natural resources of water are precious and need to be shielded at any cost. It’s not just the question of our livelihood, but the question of our life. Still is the time before it’s too late.
Dr Farooq Ahmad Peer,
Member of NLCO
