Introduction

The Kukrail River in the heart of Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh runs through a 28-km stretch before meeting the river Gomti flowing nearby. The river primarily feeds the 5000-acre Kukrail forest in the state capital. Its water is said to have anti-rabies properties and people used to come here for a bath after being bitten by dogs. Over the years, the river has turned into a vast dustbin where garbage of all kinds is deposited shamelessly by the people. Not only this but also, the river is battling encroachment and land grabbing also. A large number of unauthorised colonies including shops and showrooms have come up in the embankment area. In the process, the pristine shape of the Kukrail River is lost to a great extent and the river is battling for its survival.

Its Origin and Journey Onwards

The Kukrail river originates from a pond named Dashaur Baba in Asti village in Bakshi Ka Talab, a tehsil of Lucknow situated on the Lucknow-Delhi highway (NH-24). It is nearly 24 km from Lucknow city. This pond’s size is about 2 acres, and it falls under the Amrit Sarovar scheme and was redeveloped during 2022-2023 as a part of Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav, as per the official records. A plaque fixed near the pond is a testimonial to this fact. However, presently this pond is infested with water hyacinth in a large quantity. The water level has gone down. The water in the pond is stagnant and full of garbage inside. There are as many as seven ponds in the village which are the primary source of the river. Throughout its 28 km, the river is surrounded by 27 ponds.1

The River as a Protector of Forest

Kukrail River is the saviour of the Kukrail forest which still stands out as the green lung of the city. The forest is a prime source of oxygen for the city. It also helps to maintain ecological balance in the city. If the river becomes dead, the city will become a concrete jungle in no time. Already this historical city has lost two such green forests namely, Musa Bagh and Cantt forests which are non-existent today. Kukrail forest is the only forest which is the last hope for a clean environment for the city dwellers. This forest has several nurseries of different kinds of plant saplings from where supplies are made to various parts of the state in the plantation period. These nurseries belong to the forest department of the state. It is also a popular picnic spot. Not only this but also, Kukrail also has nature trails where the Gharial breeding and Rehabilitation Centre is established by the state government.

State of the River a Few Months Back

As stated earlier, the state of the Kukrail River was in utterly bad shape which can be summarised as such:

1. Nullahs Falling in Kukrail River

Still today, the river is the depository of 51 drains coming from the city from different directions. Out of these, 18 nullahs are small and no STP has been established yet. Without any doubt, these drains carry all kinds of rubbish, garbage and municipal waste including plastics. But it is ironic to say that whatever flow is visible in the river is the discharge of 51 drains!

2. Wide-scale Encroachments

On one side of the river, a huge establishment of illegal constructions had sprung up within a decade or so with no holds barred. Anyone could grab the land and construct a house or business establishment for himself with the complicity of the municipal corporation staff. Not only small and big houses, big showrooms, hotels and other business enterprises were thriving on the embankment area. Electricity connections and water supply were easily available. Even the blacktop road network was also laid down. Nobody seemed to be afraid of the fact that their encroachment was lying almost in the riverbed area which might be washed one day with the coming of flash floods or similar natural disasters.

3. Breeding Place of Criminals

The constructed area became a den of criminals within no time where they could seek refuge after committing crimes in the city. Besides that, various nefarious and criminal activities were often observed by the residents living in the vicinity.

The Rejuvenation Journey

Chronology of Events:

1. 25 May 2023: A new item was published highlighting the encroachments in the Kukrail river area in the national daily Dainik Jagran, a Hindi daily.
2. 26 May 2023: The version of the district magistrate and other concerned persons was prominently published in the same newspaper.
3. 29 May 2023: The Chief Minister of U.P. himself took the cognizance of the published news item.
4. 29 May 2023: The CM called a meeting of the officials and ordered a detailed survey of the encroachment within the next 15 days and asked for a report.
5. It took two months to complete the survey by the Lucknow Development Authority (LDA) team of the two illegal colonies, Akbar Nagar and Bhikampur.
6. 28 August 2023: Notice was issued for the first time for the illegal constructions on the site to the owners.
7. 28 August 2023: In the notice, a time of 15 days was given to vacate the houses.
8. 28 August 2023: In the first phase, notice was issued to the owners of 1300 illegal houses and commercial establishments found in the survey.
9. 6 December 2023: A Bulldozer was used for the first time to demolish the illegal structures in the Bhikampur colony.
10. 7 December 2023: Total of 58 illegal houses were dismantled and given houses under PM Awas Yojna.
11. 21 December 2023: For the first time, the proceedings were started to dismantle the showrooms of Akbar Nagar.
12. 21 December 2023: The ongoing work was stopped on account of the High Court's order. (The whereabouts of the showrooms with an annual turnover of more than 4 crore rupees came to light.)
13. 27 February 2024: The High Court accorded permission to LDA, the bulldozer once again dismantled the big showrooms.
14. 10 June 2024: LDA started dismantling work again from the Akbar Nagar II area.
15. 13 June 2024: All the 359 illegal constructions were totally demolished in the Akbar Nagar area.
16. 13 June 2024: A total of 54 illegal constructions of Akbar Nagar I were razed to the ground.
17. 18 June 2024: A total of 1320 illegal constructions of Akbar Nagar I and II were dismantled.

Thus, after a long battle of 8 months, the whole of the illegally built area of Akbar Nagar was razed to the ground. A total of 24.5 km of the Kukrail River area was found to be in illegal possession of the encroachers. The total valuation of the encroachment-free land, about one lakh square metres, has been assessed to be worth Rs.1,000 crore.2

The Present and the Future

The Chief Engineer, Sharda Sahayak, has declared an area of 50 metres from the embankments on both the sides as a Flood-plane Zone in which any activity including the construction of houses, commercial activity, auction of leases and pollution-causing activities are strictly prohibited.

Along the borders of the river, green cover would be established by large-scale plantations.

Already more than 10,000 saplings have been planted in the Saumitra Van area falling in the erstwhile Akbar Nagar area. More plantations will take place in the adjacent Shakti Van area in the near future.

A night safari, the country's biggest, will be opened in an area of 855.07 acres of the Kukrail zone. For that purpose, the local zoo will be shifted to this area. 4 km of the existing forest area along the Kukrail River will also be included in the Night Safari area. There will be 42 enclosures for this safari. Here, 54 varieties of wild animals will be kept. A maximum of 8,000 people will be able to enjoy a night safari at a time.

Along the riverfront on both sides, the plantation of different varieties of the plants will be carried out up to four and a half km.

Undoubtedly, the whole area encompassing the Kukrail River and the adjacent Kukrail forest will become a tourist's delight in the coming years.

The citizens will receive an added dose of fresh and clean air from the environment.3

Conclusion

Encroachment on vacant land including gram sabhas, nazul, and other government lands is a common phenomenon in our country. But when this activity extends to the aquatic land comprising ponds and river embankments or other similar waterbodies, it augurs the dangerous phase for human existence. This is because such activities badly influence the surrounding ecosystem. Environmental equilibrium gets disturbed culminating in disastrous consequences for the living beings. The worst part is that such harmful activities are conducted by humans only and no timely action is taken by the government authorities including the municipal corporations, local bodies or the other government departments. More often than not, civil society also ignores such activities. As a result of such inaction and avoidance, the encroachment activities take deep roots. Corruption of the official machinery plays an important role in this. But the Kukrail experiment has shown that where there is a will, there is a way. It happened because the Chief Minister himself took the lead and marshalled all his resources to get the encroached land free from the greedy and wily people. Even they could not find any permanent relief from the court. In the present scenario, it appears to be an ideal situation where the top executive of the state has shown rare initiative to protect the environment and help reach the Kukrail River to its pristine glory. Though a lot more efforts have to be done in this direction, the die is cast. It is only hoped that the progress achieved so far will be sustained through the tireless efforts of all concerned.

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References:

1. Anupam Srivastava and Aakash Ghosh, Hindustan Times, Jul 26, 2024.
2. Dainik Jagran, June 20, 2024 and July 27, 2024.
3. Dainik Jagran, June 20, 2024.