The once majestic Gulshan-Baridhara Lake, sprawling over the diplomatic VIP area of Dhaka, has already lost its distinctive postcard attractiveness and is slowly but steadily decaying due to a two-pronged attack of pollution and encroachment. Over two decades ago, in 2001, the Department of Environment (DoE) declared the lake to be an Ecologically Critical Area, supposedly to protect it from such threats. However, hardly any tangible follow-up steps of note were taken to protect the lake, aside from erecting notice boards prohibiting the dumping of waste into the lake.
The lake was created in Gulshan - once called a model town- to give the area an attractive setting for residents and visitors alike, to gaze at and enjoy. The lake not only added scenic beauty to the area, but also served as a natural water retention body to store rainwater, thereby preventing water stagnation in the surrounding areas, and providing an important cooling effect to the city environment. Due to the despicable dumping of waste and encroachment, what remains today is a mere shadow of its former self.
Along with the lack of civic sense among some city dwellers, the city authorities' failure to dispose of solid waste quickly and construct adequate sewerage drainage on both banks of the lake has contributed significantly to the problem. Reportedly, out of the 3,830 houses in the Gulshan, Baridhara, Banani, and Niketan areas, the sewage from 2,265 houses is connected to surface drains or the lake. Despite directives from Mayor Atiqul Islam to link these to WASA sewerage lines, a majority of the homeowners continue to discharge their waste into the lake.
Encroachment of the lake's land is also slowly strangling it and making it extremely difficult for it to breathe. Despite a Supreme Court directive prohibiting the disturbance or destruction of the greenery and the lake for constructing roads or creating residential or commercial plots, illegal occupation and willful destruction of the lake continue unabated. Vested quarters have been systematically filling the lake from all sides to construct residential and commercial buildings upon it and lay claim to the most-sought after and most expensive land in the city.
It's been reported that powerful quarters are trying to grab a portion of lake land at the Comilla Patti section of the Banani Kakrail slum under the pretext of setting up a madrasah. For months, the encroachers have been going about their nefarious activities and filling in the lake with concrete debris and garbage. Some areas have already been filled and fenced from public view with corrugated tin. A banner on the site heralds the construction work of a madrasa. Allegation has it that politically influential people are using the madrasa as a cover to occupy the lake area.
A multitude of bodies share responsibilities for the upkeep of the lake and that in itself may be a contributing factor to the problem. For example, RAJUK owns the lake, WASA owns the sewerage lines, and the DNCC owns the roads and surface drains. The DNCC occasionally launches cleaning drives in the lake, but these are infrequent and nominal without any lasting effect. Many believe the reluctance of relevant government agencies and the lack of co-ordinated efforts to protect the lake from pollution and encroachment are primarily responsible for its sorry state. If the current rate of pollution and encroachment continues, the lake might disappear, particularly near the Mohakhali side. The authorities must act before it is too late.
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