Pune: Mass Fish Deaths In Mula River Expose Alarming Pollution And Flawed Development Plans
Pune: Mass Fish Deaths In Mula River Expose Alarming Pollution And Flawed Development Plans
Pune, August 14, 2025: This morning 14 August, 2025, hundreds of dead fish were seen floating in the Mula River, a grim indicator of the dangerously polluted state of the water. Residents who witnessed the scene immediately notified Jeevitnadi and Pune River Revival, who have long warned about the deteriorating health of the river.
Despite repeated appeals, the Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC) has shown no visible urgency to address the untreated sewage and industrial effluents that are choking the river’s ecosystem. Water quality remains critically poor, with dangerously low oxygen levels likely to have caused today’s large-scale fish kill. Despite the river having a good water level due to the rainy season and inflows from the live streams, this fish kill occurred. This underscores the dangerously high level of pollution.
In stark contrast, even as the river suffers, heavy machinery was at work on its banks today for Riverfront Development (RFD) projects. These works, involving embankment construction and promenade building, are systematically destroying the rich riparian zone, a vital natural buffer that supports biodiversity and stabilizes riverbanks.
Environmental experts have consistently recommended that any true river rejuvenation must begin with stopping pollution at its source, ensuring proper sewage treatment, and protecting riparian forests. Without these steps, cosmetic beautification projects risk turning the river into a lifeless canal.
Today’s fish kill is a wake-up call that cannot be ignored. We urge PCMC and other authorities to halt ecologically destructive works, prioritise water quality treatment, and work towards genuine river restoration before it is too late.
