Mumbai : Reckless developmental activities with no regard for nature conservation could be the prime cause behind the recent floods in Jammu and Kashmir, a conservationist organisation said Tuesday.
The Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS), which has carried out studies in the Kashmir Valley over the years, revealed that there has been a severe loss of wetland habitat for various commercial activities.
“It is obvious from field studies that there has been a massive loss of wetlands in the Kashmir Valley over the years. In the past 30 years, nearly 50 percent of the wetlands in the valley have been encroached upon or severely damaged,” BNHS Director Asad Rahmani said.
Citing examples, he said the famous Dal Lake in Srinagar has witnessed numerous reclamations all along its periphery in the marshy areas which has reduced its area to just about 1,200 hectares – almost half of its earlier spread.
Similarly, the vast expanse of the Wular Lake in Bandipore, 60 km from Srinagar – an important bird area and the largest freshwater lake in Asia – which once covered 20,200 hectares of area, is now restricted to a mere 2,400 hectares.
“This can be termed as an ecological disaster. The disastrous damage caused to life and property could have been minimized if the large number of wetlands that once existed in the valley, had been preserved. Wetlands act as a sponge that retains excess of water. Wular Lake is a classical example,” Rahmani said.
Even the British and former maharajas of Kashmir used to consider Wular Lake as a buffer for floods, where excess water can be absorbed, he said.
But wrong policies on the part of successive governments in the state have contributed to the wetland losses like encroachment upon the shallow points for plantation of willow trees as in case of Wular Lake.
The situation is particularly grim as Kashmir Valley has only one narrow opening for water from the catchment areas to get drained down the Jhelum river, as all other sides make up for tall mountains, he said.
During the reign of maharajas of Kashmir, a well-functioning water drainage system synchronous with the natural topography of the region was in place, with the myriad lakes and wetlands well preserved, he said.
Terming the ecological disaster as man-made, Rahmani urged the need to enact the Wetland Conservation Act, on the lines of the Forest Conservation Act, 1980 to protect the wetlands not only in Jammu and Kashmir but across India.
“Protection of wetlands will not only help in flood control, but also help in recharging the ground water levels across the country and thus ensure better food security by way of increased water availability. Though the Central Wetlands Regulatory Authority exists presently, it has been proving ineffective in saving the wetlands,” he said.
He said it is also important not to classify wetlands as ‘wastelands’, as wetlands play an important biological, cultural, economical, and aesthetic role.