Hyderabad: Connected communities and the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) organised a cleaning drive at the Gangaram Lake on Sunday morning. Around 250 volunteers from 18 different communities, 20 GHMC workers and five supervisors started the cleaning drive using a large JCB and four trucks.
Communities around the Gangaram Lake in Chandanagar undertook the cleaning initiative to preserve natural water sources and the surrounding environment, to keep public areas green, unite communities and to take a step towards Swacch Bharat.
The Gangaram Pedda Cheruvu in Chandanagar was once a source of irrigation for agricultural lands and a source of livelihood for many fishermen. But now the lake is dying due to the inflow of untreated sewage from neighbouring colonies and the accumulation of toxic chemicals and dangerous bacteria.
Krishna Kaza, an environmentalist, who came up with the concept of connected communities and who organised the cleaning drive, said, “The lake was a source of drinking water for residential colonies around the lake. Now, the highly polluted lake water is enabling the growth of water hyacinth, resulting in the spread of dengue and other diseases. The high level of contamination is resulting in the death of aquatic animals that are part of the ecosystem. So we started this restoration drive to clean the lake and conserve what remains of the lake.”
