Futala’s pollution link traced to unconnected drains; civic crackdown soon
After the Supreme Court cleared the ₹200-crore Futala Lake project, the NMRDA and Nagpur Municipal Corporation (NMC) have shifted focus to a root cause of the fountain’s collapse — untreated sewage from lakeside slums along Amravati Road.
A trunk sewer line, laid by NMRDA in 2022, passes through these settlements, and individual outlet points were provided to each household. Yet, nearly all residents failed to connect their drains, continuing to discharge raw waste directly into Futala. Officials say the continuous sewage flow caused the algal infestation that destroyed the ₹50-crore musical fountain’s power cables, leaving the system defunct for nearly two years.
Civic sources said notices will now be issued to over 300 households, mandating connections to the main sewer within a fixed period. “We have provided infrastructure, yet negligence continues. This time, enforcement will follow,” said an NMC official from the Dharampeth zone.
Meanwhile, NMRDA has begun cleaning the site and will test IIT-Bombay–designed cables before restarting the fountain by December-end. The revived system is expected to once again light up Futala’s waters — provided the city stops treating it like a drain.
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