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Lucknow. May 11.(ANI); Rising pollution in Lucknow's Gomti river has left thousands of fishermen struggling for livelihood as the gallons of waste being dumped into the water body every day saps it of oxygen, killing fish to the tune of millions.
The Gomti is the only natural water source for the sprawling Uttar Pradesh and has been supporting the fishermen for decades.
The men say their catch has dropped by over 60 percent in the past two years and with the dumping of sewage and toxic factory chemical only increasing they are fast losing the river and their livelihood.
Moreover, the stinking river has been a major deterrent for buyers who prefer to buy fish from frozen stock houses rather than the weekly bazaars.
Alarmed by their plight and that of the river, the state's pollution board has begun test to access the damage.
Much to everybody's shock, the river, after a recent untimely downpour which washed out tons of more waste into it, had nearly zero level of dissolved oxygen, officially classifying it as a dead water body.
Though the crisis was averted after an immediate pumping in of fresh water, the problem is here to say.
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