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Cases on protection of lakes: Dal lake, Jammu and Kashmir

Dal Lake is one of the world's largest natural lakes. In 1200 AD, the lake covered an area of 75 sq km. By the 1980s, only 25 sq. km survived, and today this lake stretches over barely 12 sq. km. The lake now shelters about 50 hamlets with a population of over 50,000 people, who have property rights over 300 hectares (6,000 kanals) of agricultural land and 670 hectares (13,400 kanals) of water area. Besides this, a large number of commercial and residential buildings such as hotels, guest houses, restaurants and houseboats have sprung up in and around the Dal. All these have drastically reduced the size of the lake.
 

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