Hajja Pokhari, spread over 26 acres, has now been reduced to a marshy place with most of the water disappearing from the area. Telegraph picture

Bhubaneswar, April 14: Hajja Pokhari, one of the largest ponds in the city, is battling the twin threats of siltation and encroachment.

As thousands of people in the capital are facing acute drinking water crisis, a little attention from the authorities could help the water body regain its lost glory and recharge the city’s groundwater table.

Spread over 26 acres, the pond in ward No. 57 is a glaring example of mismanagement of water bodies. Once a lively ecosystem, the pond used to attract a large number of birds during winter but they are hardly seen these days.

Local residents of Sundarpada and Kapilaprasad feel if the water level in Hajja Pokhari improves then most of the open wells in the locality will be sufficiently charged during summer. If that happens there will be no need to depend on the polluted Daya West Canal for water supply.

“Hajja Pokhari was extensively used by Sundarpada and Kapilaprasad residents till two decades ago for bathing and irrigation. There was a siphon on the right bank of the water body and later it was badly damaged. With the approval of the local residents’ committee, I had submitted a detailed proposal of Rs 4.5 crore to the Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation for revival of the water body. It had proposed construction of a boundary wall on all sides of the water body and developing a park with sitting arrangements on the right bank as there is ample space,’’ said Krushna Chandra Sethy, the local councillor.

“Apart from reviving the water body, the proposal aims at formulating an idea to revive water-based tourism in the Old Town area as the entire Dhauli-Old Town and Khandagiri-Udayagiri will become another triangle for tourism promotion. Also, as the entire area of Pokhariput, Sundarpada, Bhimatangi and adjacent areas are set to grow into thickly populated housing zones, the twin-advantage of water source and recreation facility near the water body will be an added advantage,” Sethy added.

Secretary of Kapilaprasad-Sundarpada Unnayan Chhatisha Parishad (KSUCP), Seikh Niyamatullah, said: “The bed of the water body needs proper dredging to remove silt deposited over the years. Even where the surface is stony, excavation work can help in providing some depth to the water level.’’

Sethy said a project to construct siphon, desilting work and renovating the bed is likely to end soon, but there was a lot of scope for a bigger and futuristic project to change the face of the water body.

Another KSUCP member added that there was large-scale encroachment on the left bank of the water body. Recently with pressure from the ‘parishad’ one person had demolished the structure, but two others were not taking any steps even after promising the residents’ body to do that.

BMC officers added that for renovating three ponds of ward No. 57, a proposal of Rs 45 lakh had been sent to the Centre to grant funds under the additional central assistance category.