Lakhs of fish were found dead and floating at the Banganga tank on Thursday due to water pollution. This is considered to be an odd scenario in April as there are no festivals, especially the Pitrupaksha rituals, which are the main reason for the death of the fishes every year.
Mahesh, an environmentalist of the locality said, “The dying of fishes in the Banganga is an annual affair in September due to the festivals. However, this year the fishes have died in April which was quite shocking for us. I visited the place and tried to find out what the issue was and why this place is getting worse day by day for the fishes.”
“There is leakage due to the water from the drains entering the tank and thus, polluting it. Rising temperatures might have also resulted in the deaths. Moreover, construction work of a building is in progress nearby. Water with cement and other construction material flows into the lake. All these reasons together are causing high pollution and bringing down the level of oxygen in the water which is leading the fishes to die this month,” he added.
The contractor cleaning the tank on the site said that four trucks of fish were removed from the site and the cleaning process was still underway.
According to the locals, during the Pitrupaksha rituals, people put a large quantity of food in the water as a symbolic offering to their ancestors. This leads to the death of fish. There is no clear policy of the government regarding it.
During the lockdown, the fish at Banganga had survived during Pitrupaksha as citizens were not allowed to venture outside.
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