Pune: Residents along the Mula, near Balewadi, Pimple Nilakh and Baner, have complained of effluents in the water, a foul smell and dead fish floating in the river this week. They alleged that untreated sewage and industrial pollution were responsible for the deterioration in water quality.Ganesh Balwadkar, a resident who runs Chetak Sports Club in the area, said that the water quality has been poor for a long time. “But this week, it turned completely black with a foul smell. Dead fish have been turning up in large numbers every day for the past 3-4 days. Either there are pollutants being released in the water by unknown people or the sewage water is getting in the river without getting treated first. The fish in this river are used to polluted water. Only when the pollution crosses all limits do they turn up dead. It needs to be investigated and the polluters must be punished,” said Balwadkar.A team comprising Govind Dharma Dangat, assistant municipal commissioner; Aundh-Baner ward officials and others visited the site on Friday afternoon. “We checked the sewage lines in our areas and none are broken or discharging water into the river. The problem must lie in the water upstream,” Dangat said, explaining that the Hinjewadi area is home to many industrial units and residential complexes. “It is possible that pollutants are coming in from there and mixing with the water.”He added that water hyacinth in the river in the Balewadi-Baner area causes the water to become stagnant, causing fish to rise to the surface. “We will send a letter in this regard to PMC’s environment department on Tuesday,” Dangat said.Babasaheb Kukade, the Pune regional officer from Maharashtra Pollution Control Board, said the agency was notified of the matter at 4.30 pm on Friday and it acted immediately. “Our team will collect samples of the fish, water, etc., and send them for analysis at our laboratory. As per the preliminary enquiry and the laboratory report, further course of action will be decided,” said Kukade.
