Aamir Altaf/ Nisar wani
The earth, the air, the land and the water are not an inheritance from our forefathers but a loan from our children. So we have to handover to them at least as it was handed over to us. Lal Koul a canal flowing from Bumhama through Drugmulla, Shalpora, Keegam and many other villages was once an important source of irrigation for thousands Kanals of paddy fields.
The canal used to evince a picturesque view of the area. In summer the children were taking bath and would get rid from the scorching heat. The housewives and girl’s used to come to Lal Koul for the sake of pristine beauty and solace of its stress booster and wash dishes and clothes on its banks and chat with each other.
When we were children, we witnessed its flowing crystal clear waters soothing our eyes. Hundreds of families were using its water for drinking purposes.
But for many years now, the Lal Koul has undergone tremendous change and we are witnessing the water quality declining due to unnecessary human interference.
Change in climatic conditions, the high temperature resulted into the quick evaporation of water which affected the reduction of water level and on contrary results in the formation of marshy margins and settling down of countless floating algae and other grasses. The latest visible construction along the bank of the Lal Koul for purposes of widening the roads made the situation worse for it and was yet another blow for its existence.
The human settlements on the periphery of Lal koul constitutes on of the major contributing factors for its deteriorative conditions. The sewage discharged into the canal directly. Solid wastes such as left out vegetables, polythene bags, papers etc are dumped into the Lal Koul. Number of latrines used by local residents have also been constructed over its banks. The water that was once pure and clean is now poisonous due to the dumping of garbage and plastic and commuters have to deal with bad odor and dirt while walking along the bank of Lal koul.
The piled garbage has attracted the stray dogs and due to the scarcity of water farmers are not able to irrigate their paddy fields. Now due to the increasing pollution in Lal Koul many water born diseases are effecting daily life of people.
People are facing many problems that are clearly visible but majority section of the people are sleeping like a log. Lal Koul is in pathetic condition and the irrigation department and civic administration need to find a joint solution to keep the canal clean . The Lal Koul is the responsibility of the irrigation department but it is sad that the department is not initiating steps for proper maintenance.
People who throw waste materials, garbage, dirt into the Lal Koul are also guilty for its depreciating conditions.
Authors are the students of Aligarh Muslim university and hail from Drugmullah District Kupwara .
