Juhu locals plan to revive 63-acre lake

The Juhu lake, spread across 63 acre, is expected to meet the water needs of 50,000 residents if revived.

The Juhu lake, spread across 63 acre, is expected to meet the water needs of 50,000 residents if revived.

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Some residents from the area have been trying to revive the lake for some years, but with the municipal corporation encouraging use of alternative sources to meet the water crisis, their effort has received an impetus.

The residents held a meeting with Member of Parliament Gurudas Kamat and suburban collector Vishwas Patil at the Kamala Raheja Park in Juhu on Saturday.

“The plan is to restore the 40 acre of the unencroached lake so that it would help sail through the water crisis in the future,” said Siddharth Dhanwant Shanghvi, an author and Juhu resident.

About 23 acre of the lake has been encroached upon.

The plan is to save the lake from being further encroached by constructing a boundary wall and creating a catchment area for the rainwater to flow into the lake. “We have identified 103 water bodies over the last three years, which can be revived to serve as alternate water sources. The Juhu lake is one of them,” said Patil.

“The AAI thinks that if the lake is restored, the water will seep in on the runway, but if its dredged deeper, then no such seepage will occur,” said an official requesting anonymity.