SRINAGAR: The persistent loss of fish in the well-known Mansar Lake of Samba district is stirring alarm among residents.
Quoting locals, the Daily Excelsior reported that this has been going on continuously for the last four days, and till now around 2000 fish have died, with efforts to remove them from the lake ongoing. “Every day, Wildlife Department staff are removing dead fish from Mansar Lake and burying them safely to prevent pollution and potential epidemics.”
The significant loss of fish has deeply worried locals, who suspect a disease outbreak is responsible for the deaths. Although similar incidents have occurred in the past at Mansar Lake, the current high death toll has heightened fear among the community, the newspaper reported.
Bishamber Singh and Surinsar Mansar Range Officers of the Wildlife Department said that the fish had started dying suddenly in the last four days.
On the first day, their number was very less. It seemed that this would not continue further but the fish continued to die. “After that we informed higher ups of the Fisheries Department and found that they died due to eating of hailstones during the rains’’. They said “We are burying all the dead fish by digging a pit at a distance so that no disease spreads due to the bad smell’’.
