The Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) plans to clean the Katraj and Jambhulwadi lakes within the city limits by desilting it for better water storage. As part of the initiative, the civic body has appealed to farmers and residents to collect the excavated soil for use in agriculture and gardening. The PMC’s drainage department on Friday issued a public advertisement inviting citizens to take the soil from the lakes.
Jagdish Khanore, head, drainage department, said, “The storage capacity of the lakes has reduced due to accumulated mud. PMC plans to dig and remove the mud and improve the water quality.”
The civic body will give the mud free of cost, which is rich soil for agriculture purposes. The transport cost would be borne by the citizens.
Hemant Rasane, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader and MLA, said, “Pune city has many lakes, including Katraj, Jambhulwadi, Pashan, Lakaki, Dhanori, Lohegaon, and lakes on many hills. All these lakes will be developed, which will become tourist attractions as well as open areas. Many entertainment activities are planned around these lakes in the future.”