37 out of 172 water bodies in Ahmedabad have ‘vanished': Civic body report

As demolitions and evictions at Chandola Lake brought the spotlight back on lakes, an internal report of the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) has claimed that of the 172 water bodies in the city, 37 have 'vanished'.
The Indian Express, which has accessed this report, visited some of the sites where once there were lakes, only to find private and government buildings on them now.
The AMC report seems in line with the report of a High Level Committee (HLC) on Urban Planning under the Urban Development and Urban Housing department that was released by Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his visit to Gujarat in May.
While citing examples of 'vanished' lakes in Ahmedabad, the HLC report suggests, 'Authorities and developers should ensure that the flow of the streams is not restricted by development. Any linear, public infrastructure cutting across water channels should be retrofitted to allow unhindered passage of water.'
The HLC report, which tackles various issue related to urban development in the state, points out that the overall area of water bodies along four lakes — Vastrapur, Memnagar, Thaltej and Sola — in Ahmedabad 'has reduced by almost 46 per cent'.
Highlighting the role of and challenges faced by urban water systems and their planning, the report has listed the case study of Vastrapur lake and smaller lakes around it. A comparative analysis, for instance: the aerial imagery from 2000, and 2020 of Vastrapur lake, indicates a declining trend in blue-cover, highlighting the rapid loss of water bodies due to unregulated urban development.
'In the 2000 aerial image, the lake is prominently visible. However, in TPS (Town Planning Scheme) Bodakdev 1B, the lake was appropriated, its land use reclassified, and a proposal for Socially and Economically Weaker Sections (SEWS) housing was introduced. Further analysis of the 2020 aerial imagery shows that a haat (marketplace) had been constructed on the site, completely replacing the lake. This case clearly demonstrates how statutory plans often lack water sensitivity, facilitating the conversion of water bodies into developable land and ultimately leading to their disappearance', the report states.
According to this report, the water bodies vanished because they were not recognised in the statutory plan, citing more cases in the city.
The HLC report, in its list of suggestions, also states that mapping of streams should be 'integral to plan-making'.
The AMC's internal report mentions that an unnamed lake in Thaltej not only has on it a residential society, but also a water distribution centre of the civic body.
When asked about the encroachment on the lakes, an AMC official said, 'In places where buildings have come up, we are taking a call on a case-by-case basis after sending proposals to the state government. This is a policy matter.

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