Protecting Urban Water Bodies Requires a Year Round Approach

Ganesh Chaturthi is one time when our attention naturally turns towards lakes and other water bodies. We talk about idol immersion, water quality and ways to reduce pollution. 

These conversations are important. But the pressure on our water bodies does not begin or end with the festival. 

Throughout the year, untreated or inadequately treated sewage, solid waste, runoff and, in some places, industrial discharge can enter urban water bodies. Over time, this can affect water quality and the aquatic life that depends on it. 

What Happens to Water Quality? 

When different pollutants enter a lake, we need to understand how they are affecting the water. A few common indicators help us do that: 

• Dissolved Oxygen (DO): Tells us how much oxygen is available in the water for aquatic life. 

• BOD and COD: Help us understand the oxygen demand created by organic and other oxidizable matter. 

• TSS: Tells us about suspended particles that can affect water clarity and quality. 

• pH: Shows whether the water is acidic or alkaline 
  

The Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) includes these and other parameters in its guidance for monitoring water quality around idol immersion. 

Monitoring tells us what is happening in the water. But protecting a lake also means reducing the pollution entering it in the first place.  

Protecting Urban Water Bodies Cannot Stop After the Festival

During Ganesh Chaturthi, using suitable materials (Natural clay idols), choosing designated immersion areas and properly collecting waste can help reduce pressure on natural water bodies.  But once the festival is over, other sources of pollution continue. 

This is where year-round wastewater management matters. Wastewater needs to be collected and treated before it reaches our lakes and rivers. Sewage treatment plants need to work properly, water quality needs to be monitored, and treatment systems need regular operation and maintenance. 

Where treated wastewater meets the required quality for a suitable use, it can also be reused.  The connection is simple:  Prevent Pollution → Treat Wastewater → Monitor Water Quality → Reuse Where Suitable → Protect Water Bodies 

Ganesh Chaturthi helps focus attention on our lakes, but protecting them requires action throughout the year. 

A lake cannot be protected for a few days and neglected for the remaining months.