THEY have blood on their hands -- these administrators, authorities, leaders and people too. All of them have conspired in the murder of Nagpur’s famous, iconic and most useful waterbodies. One by one, they have strangled lakes around us, systematically, unofficially and also officially reducing them to a patch of water. ‘Bodies’ of these waterbodies are scattered all around the city - east, west, north, south, central - in every area. The ‘murder trail’ leads one to Jagnath Budhwari area in east Nagpur in search of the Lendi Talao. All one encounters is a thick growth of bushes, stench of sewage, criminal encroachment of the waterbody and ugly scars of indifference by each and every stakeholder. The tributaries that once filled the Lendi Talao have turned into nullahs. On the nullahs have come up shanties and even pucca houses.

 

 

 

There is simply no way to enter into the lake from any side. The murder of Lendi Talao is complete. All that remains is a piece of dry land full of weeds and vegetation. The Lendi Talao was among the oldest lakes in city. It has now almost become extinct, just like the nearby Dobi Talao which is now a barren land. The lake is surrounded by slums made up of concrete walls and roofs. The structures have completely choked the water-body from all directions. The slum-dwellers, who encroached the lake decades ago, are now crying hoarse due to the unhygienic environment as tall and thick bushes have grown in their backyard which was earlier a lake. Shashibai Dukre, a 53-year-old slum-dweller now squarely blames the Nagpur Municipal Corporation (NMC) for its totally apathy towards residents’ health. She alleges that no NMC staffer visits the area to clean sewage and other garbage. The open sewage line and accumulated sewage is a round-the-year health hazard for the residents, Dukre laments. The spot of the lake itself is a mystery. Its surrounding is so densely populated that no one can easily find a path to reach the lakebed. Its a treacherous trek through a narrow lane and requires ‘trespassing’ into a ‘private land’.

 

The lake that used to feed Naik Talao and Dobi Talao through its overflow decades ago is now strangulated due to negligence of authorities, carelessness of the local population, and continuous encroachment happening in the area for many years. On the paper and in official records, the Lendi Talao occupies an area of around 27 acres in the densely populated area. Maharashtra Government had given in-principle approval for rejuvenation of nearly seven acres of the lake back in 2022 under the AMRUT 2.0 scheme. Unfortunately, the project never progressed even after three years, leaving the lake full of filth and tall grass. Once a lifeline for the neighbourhood, Lendi Talao has suffered from unchecked urbanisation and social apathy. Today, the lake is at a juncture where it is seeking human support for its survival as it has failed to rejuvenate naturally. The water has nearly dried up and even during this monsoon season not a single patch of water is visible. Instead, tall grass has grown in the lakebed, and multiple tin-shelters have come up on it. It seems a pattern aided for land-grabbing. One by one lakes in the city are drying up raising suspicion of a bigger conspiracy in the name of regularisation. The neglect of Lendi Talao is a glaring example of how urban development often comes at the expense of natural resources. Without immediate intervention, the city risks losing not just a lake but also a crucial piece of its environmental and cultural heritage.