Ehsan Fazili/Srinagar

Three years of sustained community-driven work to clean the nearly dead Khushalsar-Gilsar twin lakes of Srinagar, Kashmir, spearheaded by the reputed businessman-turned-environmentalist Manzoor Ahmad Wangnoo, have borne fruit.

Named Mission Ehsaas, the cleansing campaign by the Nigeen Lake Conservation Organization (NLCO), founded by Wangnoo, meant excavating about 5,000 truckloads of muck and trash from the lakes. Three months ago, the NLCO proudly handed these over to the J&K Lake Conservation & Management Authority (LC&MA), a government organization.

Wangnoo expects the Lake Authority to maintain and preserve the lakes which are key to a healthy natural ecosystem of the Valley.

Kushalsar Lake images: before and after cleansing (Source: NLCO)

Wangnoo’s pioneering project was the restoration of Nigeen Lake, a favorite haunt of foreign and wealthy tourists for staying in houseboats, 20 years ago.

“Under Mission Ehsaas these water bodies have undergone unprecedented revival. It was not just about lake cleaning, it was about reconnecting the people of Srinagar to their lost heritage”, Manzoor Ahmad Wangnoo, Chairman of the NLCO said.

“With the removal of muck and solid waste for more than three years, it was possible to reclaim the lakes”, he said.

He says the twin lakes would become fresh scenic spots for the tourists, provided the J&K Lake Authority ensures their maintenance, conservation, demarcation of boundaries, and further preventive measures.

Wangnoo noticed the lakes were choking to death with these turning into garbage and effluent dumps and shrinking due to encroachments while the authorities looked the other way.

The twin Lakes were neglected with unchecked encroachments by the land mafia for nearly 35 years, he said. Their restoration has also led to a revival of the water transport (navigation) link from Srinagar to Ganderbal (Mansbal Lake) and the Wular Lake (Bandipore) in North Kashmir, he said.

Wangnoo's office is filled with awards for his environmental work

Wangnoo’s mission does not end with the revival of Nigeen (2002) or the recent Khushalsar-Gilsar lakes. He has so far revived at least 12 natural water springs around Srinagar and in the nearby Ganderbal district and, lately has extended the work to Beijbehara in the Anantnag district of South Kashmir.

The NLCO was also involved in rehabilitation work of the 2005 earthquake in Uri and Tangdhar areas in North Kashmir, and the restoration and conservation of water bodies in the Srinagar area after the 2014 floods.

"We have already revived 12 defunct natural springs in Srinagar and Ganderbal, while work is in progress on another spring in Bijbehara”, he told Awaz-The Voice. After reviving four springs in Ganderbal, their waters were declared fit for drinking water after the due laboratory tests”.

Manzoor Wangnoo reciving an award from Lt Governor

Earlier the administration had restricted the use of drinking water from these springs.

His ongoing work under Project Ehsaas is the restoration of Jablipora spring in Bijbehara in May, Wangnoo said, “When we began, it quickly became clear that this wasn’t just restoration, it was rescue surgery. Years of neglect had weakened its very foundation…. We are doing what we can, but a comprehensive, lasting revival demands institutional support. This spring once restored, has the potential to serve generations and address local water scarcity”.

He is sanguine that his “movement received national attention” with Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, lauding the efforts to revive Khushalsar-Gilsar lakes in “Mann Ki Baat”  February 27, 2022.

Wangnoo also referred to the appreciation of his movement by J&K Lt Governor, Manoj Sinha in his Awam Ki Awaz address and inaugurating phase 4 of Mission Ehsaas (of NLCO) for the revival of  Sazgaripora side of Khushalsar on World Environment Day last year.

In recognition of his efforts to restore the dying water bodies of Kashmir, Manzoor Wangnoo, Chairman of the Nigeen Lake Conservation Organization (NLCO), has received several awards. The recent awards included the prestigious “Environmental Stewardship Award” presented by the Shaheen Group during its Convocation and Personality Development Programme in Hyderabad on June 2, described as “Green Ambassador of Environment”.   

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“This is not an award. It is a call to continue”, he commented on the occasion as chief guest. He was also felicitated with the “Green Ambassador of Kashmir” Award by the Travel Agents Federation of India (TAFI) in Srinagar on June 14.