Bhubaneswar, March 22: The Santh Tulsi Das Sarobar, a historic lake spread over 4.08 acres in ward No. 4 on the outskirts of the city, has become a victim of neglect and encroachment.

While the lake is covered with weeds, its entire bank where two temples stand has been encroached. The authorities are yet to take steps for the saving the waterbody.

According to legend, the great saint Tulsi Das himself constructed the lake during his stay here while he was on a pilgrimage to Jagananth Dham, Puri, in the 16th century.

A statue of the saint stands at the place where he used to meditate. The saint also constructed a temple near the pond and established the statues of Lord Rama, Laxman and Devi Sita there. However, later new statues were placed when the old ones went missing in 1976.

“The issues of the lake were earlier handled by a trust that included officials of the revenue and endowment departments. But when it was passed over to the Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC), the civic body did nothing except putting up its signboard. Now, even the BMC signboard has been uprooted,” said a local villager and social worker.

Sukumar Sahoo, councillor of ward No. 4, said: “Apart from the renovation of the lake, the surrounding area should also be beautified by the civic authorities. There are two temples and one statue of Hanuman near the site. All these will make the site an interesting place for tourists to visit.”

Prafulla Chandra Tripathy, executive trustee of Jayadev Foundation Trust, who has fought for the renovation of the lake in the past, said: “The lake was cleaned, jungles were removed and the site was renovated by the then sub-collector of Bhubaneswar, R.N. Senapati in 1972. The renovation work of the 16th century temple was also taken up. After that in 1976 the then secretary of urban development department was instrumental in granting Rs 2 lakh for the renovation work of this lake and another waterbody near Dhauli. J.C. Buddhiraj, a well-known contractor of that time, had donated Rs 26,000 for the three statues on the banks of the lake.”

“The renovation work was undertaken the then Cuttack East Rural Works Division as the area was then under the jurisdiction of the Cuttack office. But later some local anti-socials occupied a part of the peripheral land,” Tripathy added.

Bibekananda Routray, another person from the nearby Jayapur village, said the failure of the local and civic administration had worsened the plight of the Santh Tulsi Das Sarobar.

“There is still time to rectify the mistakes. The administration should act in time to renovate the lake and develop it as a site for religious tourism,” he added.

BMC officials said that for the renovation of the lake Rs 50 lakh had been granted under the additional central assistance and the work will start within a month or two. “Once the renovation work starts, then issues such as encroachment will be addressed,” added Sahoo.