Water paucity hits Qazigund villages as dead fish evoke quality concern

Babapora (Qazigund): Feb 20: Water paucity has hit Qazigund villages as dead fish evoked concerns about water quality of Babapora spring in south Kashmir’s Kulgam district.
According to locals, the contamination of the main source of drinking water is an unprecedented event in the area.
The spring, which is the primary water source for around three villages, is currently flushing out dead fish, causing concern and alarm among the residents.
Locals told Rising Kashmir that the spring dried up a month ago and there was shortage of drinking water.
“The water level increased a few weeks ago and the spring began flushing dead fish. It happened for the first time,” the locals said.
Manzoor Ahmad, a local, told Rising Kashmir that in January, the spring that served drinking water to a number of villages began to dry up, affecting water supply to many areas.
“It was out of the blue that this spring witnessed low water flow for the first time, however some weeks later its discharge increased. We are witnessing a natural calamity. The spring is now flushing dead fish which is contaminating the water,” Ahmad explained.
Another local, Abdul Rehman Dar, told Rising Kashmir that thousands of fish have died so far, and the process is ongoing.
He said that the water is unsafe to drink, and a foul odour near a spring is nothing more than a natural disaster.
“The Jal Shakti Department and the Fisheries Department have been working for the last two weeks to clean the spring, but it is still flushing dead fish,” he said.
The spring gushes water at a hill lock, and no one knows how many fish are present.
Locals say they usually see a few fish roaming around at the mouth of spring, but it’s unbelievable that thousands of fish died after the spring’s discharge increased.
Zulfikar Ali, Executive Engineer (XEN) of the Jal Shakti department, told Rising Kashmir that the spring under the hill lock had flushed dead fish towards the mouth of the spring after developing low oxygen concentrations, which had never happened before.
“The spring provides water to three villages- Babapora Teng, Mandhole, and Chaden Pajan,” the official said.
“The Jal Shakti department tested the water and discovered it to be bacterial contaminated, so we stopped supplying water to the areas and began tanker service and other alternative measures,” Jal Shakti officials said.
According to a Fisheries Department official, they initially relocated live fish that were visible near the spring into a nearby nallah.
Meanwhile, a service of fire and emergency vehicles was pressed into service to clean the spring and make the water supply fit for human consumption.
An official said that water testing is being conducted to determine the actual cause of the fish’s death.
Jal Shakti official said, “the district administration in Kulgam is closely monitoring the situation, and an expert committee has been formed to thoroughly investigate the events and report its findings within a reasonable timeframe.”
Furthermore, the Jal Shakti and fisheries departments have been directed to keep a close eye on the spring and report to the district administration on a daily basis, according to the official.