A student at the University of Hyderabad (UoH) has alleged that a huge amount of sewage was entering one of the major lakes on campus, and could soon turn into a potential hazard for wildlife on the premises.
"Though on paper, a number of conservation works are in progress, we don’t see anything on the ground. Everyday, a huge amount of sewage, including the waste detergent water generated from washing synthetic courts in Gachibowli stadium, is entering the Peacock Lake," Ravi Jillapalli, a student wildlife activist, who founded the 'Wild Lens' group on campus, wrote on Facebook.
Stating that a foul smell was emanating from the lake for five years, Ravi accused the administration of failing to address the problem.
"This is the only live lake in summer on which all the wildlife depends. We have 200 plus species of birds, and a number of animals like spotted deer, hares, rabbits, wild boars, monitor lizards, mongoose and other stray animals. This sewage with huge amounts of toxic sediments can be a potential hazard to wildlife. All of them need the lake for their survival in this scorching summer," he added.
Speaking to the Times of India, P Thukaram, deputy registrar and sanitation and horticulture head at the UoH said, "The students have never approached us. If students approach us with the matter, we will look into the same."
Already, wildlife activists on campus allege that the animals were under threat from trespassers.
The students from 'Wild Lens', a group formed on the campus to protect wildlife in the university, say that some of the trespassers were cutting trees, and picking fruits, while others may have been hunting.
After the death of at least four animals in 10 days on the campus, a group of students from the varsity nabbed 15 trespassers in a single day earlier this month.
Earlier, the group had nabbed around 65 trespassers over a span of two years.
The students nabbed the poachers on the same day that the body of a peahen was found on campus, and handed it over to the state's Forest Department for a post-mortem.
At least two spotted deers and one wild boar had died before that. Another deer has been found dead since.
Following the deaths, Chief Conservator of Forests, Ranga Reddy, S Kukrety told Deccan Chronicle, “We are talking to UoH authorities on this as a number of incidents have occurred on their campus.”