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Powai lake - a cesspool of controversies


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Powai- The latest tragedy to hit the city's largest lake, the Powai lake, is merely the tip of the iceberg of issues that face the water body.

This scenic lake offers some of Mumbai's best vistas, but the placid lake hides some truly murky truths under the surface. The lake's water has long been declared unfit to be used for drinking, with industrial waste and sewage water released into it regularly. Complaints by local residents and NGOs to the municipal corporation yielded a reply from the BMC claiming that sewage release to the lake has since stopped.

Another issue that plagues the lake are the houseboats which were leased out by the BMC to private contractors, but the leases have since expired. The lake's woes rose to the surface on Monday when BMC officials along with civic standing chairman Yashodhar Phanse, corporators Santosh Dhuri and Manoj Kotak inspected the lake and found to their chagrin that the BMC had made false claims.

Sewage, industrial as well as from nearby hotels, continues to make its way to the lake. The houseboats, as the tragedy last week proved, continue to ply, hand in glove with corrupt civic officials and contractors.

Phanse plans to raise the issue during the standing committee meeting on Wednesday. Dhuri has alleged that it is the unholy nexus of officials and contractors that allow these malpractices to go on unchecked at one of the city's most loved spots.

How will the civic administration react to the allegations? Will Powai lake be clean once again? There's little we can do but wait and watch.

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