Srinagar, July 13(KNS): For generations, the women of North Kashmir's Bandipora district have relied on the annual harvest of green water chestnuts (singhara) from Wular Lake, India's largest freshwater lake. Every summer, from July to September, hundreds of women leave their homes before dawn, rowing wooden boats into the vast wetland to collect the edible crop that has long sustained fishing families.

 

Today, however, those same women say Wular is no longer the lake they once knew.

 

Harvesters from villages including Lahwarlpora, Zurimanz, Kanbathi, Lankreshipora, Saderkot,Banyari and adjoining areas allege that the lake has become increasingly polluted, with darkened water, foul odour, declining water levels and a sharp fall in water chestnut production threatening their livelihoods.

 

Their concerns come amid a recent study published in Scientific Reports, which detected heavy metals in water chestnuts collected from Wular, Dal, Hokersar and Manasbal wetlands. The findings have raised fresh concerns over pollution, food safety and the deteriorating health of Kashmir's freshwater ecosystems.

 

Standing waist-deep in the lake for several hours each day, women harvesters say they now wear gloves and, in many cases, face masks to protect themselves from contaminated water.

 

"In the peak season, I now collect only 10 to 15 kilograms a day. Earlier, one woman could easily harvest more than 30 kilograms," said Shafeeqa Begum, a 45-year-old harvester from Lankreshipora. "The water has turned dark, the smell has become unbearable and our hands start itching if we work without gloves."

 

She recalled that during her childhood, people would drink water directly from parts of the lake while harvesting.

 

"Today, that is unimaginable. We now wear gloves and sometimes masks while working in the same lake from which we once drank water," she said.

 

Another harvester, Ateeqa Bano, said many women suffer from skin rashes after prolonged exposure to the polluted water.

 

"We leave before sunrise and spend the entire morning inside the lake. Earlier, the water was clean and fresh. Now there is a foul smell everywhere. The falling water level and dense weeds have made harvesting much harder, while the quality of the crop has also declined," she said.

 

According to the women, the shrinking harvest has compounded the economic difficulties of fishing families already affected by declining fish production.

 

Residents also questioned the effectiveness of restoration efforts undertaken by the Wular Conservation and Management Authority (WUCMA), alleging that only a small portion of the lake has been cleaned while pollution continues unabated.Click Here To Follow Our WhatsApp Channel

 

Ghulam Ahmad, a fisherman from Zurimanz, said nearly 30 villages are directly or indirectly dependent on Wular Lake.

 

"Our livelihood is at risk, yet authorities remain indifferent. Cleaning just two or three per cent of the lake cannot be called restoration. The local communities should be involved in conservation efforts," he said.

 

He also highlighted unchecked waste disposal into streams feeding the lake.

 

"I recently saw people dumping garbage into Nallah Madhumati, which ultimately flows into Wular. Unless pollution in feeder streams is controlled through strict monitoring and public awareness, the lake will continue to deteriorate," he said.

 

Another fisherman, Ghulam Rasool, said both fish stocks and water chestnut production have witnessed a steady decline.

 

"Wular was once known for its crystal-clear water and abundant fish. Today, the smell itself reflects the level of pollution. As fish and water chestnuts disappear, so does our livelihood," he said.

 

Local trader Abdul Gaffar, who purchases water chestnuts from harvesters for sale across Kashmir, said production has declined significantly over the years.

 

"Earlier, women supplied much larger quantities every season. Now they return with much smaller harvests, and even the quality has deteriorated, affecting both harvesters and traders," he said.

 

Residents maintain that despite repeated announcements regarding dredging, conservation and restoration projects, they have witnessed little improvement on the ground.

 

Meanwhile, the Scientific Reports study found traces of heavy metals, including cadmium, chromium, nickel, zinc and iron, in edible tissues of water chestnuts collected from Wular, Dal, Hokersar and Manasbal wetlands. While contamination levels were highest in Dal Lake, researchers warned that pollution across Kashmir's freshwater wetlands is entering aquatic food sources and may pose risks to human health.

 

The study recommended continuous environmental monitoring, improved wastewater treatment facilities and stricter pollution-control measures to safeguard both the fragile wetland ecosystem and the thousands of families dependent on it.

 

For the women who spend months inside Wular every year, however, the deterioration requires no scientific confirmation.

 

"We don't need research to tell us the lake is sick," said Shareefa Begum. "We see the water changing every year. We smell it every day, we feel it on our skin, and we are watching the livelihood our mothers passed on to us slowly disappear." (KNS)