Nagpur's Lendi lake work stalled, NMC asks to drop Rs 14.13 crore project from AMRUT 2.0

The question of reviving the historic Lendi lake in the heart of Nagpur has come up once again. Rs 14.13 crore has been sanctioned for the lake's development under the Centre's AMRUT 2.0 scheme, yet work has not actually started.

The project has stalled because of encroachments, a sewage problem and the lack of an access road needed for the work. The municipal corporation has finally written to the state government asking that the project be removed from the scheme.

There has been large-scale encroachment on the lake and in its catchment area. The corporation has issued notices to 184 people living there illegally, but the encroachments have not yet been removed. As a result, the administration cannot drain the lake, cannot remove the accumulated silt and cannot get development machinery to the site. Despite the sanctioned funds, progress on the project stands at zero per cent.

The lake's original area was 28.5 acres. A 2019 report of the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) records that 67,490 square metres, or 16.67 acres, of the lake had been encroached upon. Only 11.83 acres were thus left for the lake.

At a general body meeting of the municipal corporation in October 2021, it was also stated that the lake's water spread is about 12 acres. The development work sanctioned under AMRUT 2.0 was limited to an area of only 6.42 acres.

Sewage from 40 to 42 houses around the lake flows directly into it without any treatment. Because more sewage is coming in than expected, it has become difficult to take the revival work forward. Social activist Ravi Parate alleged that the lake's development is stuck for lack of political will.

Corporator Hemant Barde said removing the encroachments is necessary for beautification. The encroachment matter is pending in the Collector's office, so all eyes are now on the administration's stand. Citizens are angry that, even after Rs 14.13 crore was sanctioned, the project may be dropped from the scheme instead of the historic lake being revived.