Every Sunday, This 14-YO Rows Across Dal Lake to Save Its Fragile Ecosystem from Choking

Every Sunday, while others her age are busy with homework and weekend recreation, 14-year-old Jannat Patloo is rowing her boat on Dal Lake with gloves on and a net in hand. Wondering why? To remove the plastic and waste that pollute the lake.

As the world-famous Dal Lake struggles under the weight of pollution, Jannat, a Class 7 student at Linton Hall Public School in Srinagar, has been leading cleanup drives on its waters since the age of five.

“I was inspired by my father, who has been cleaning the lake on and off for years, to undo the damage caused by decades of neglect. Every time I accompanied him, watching him collect the waste filled me with enthusiasm to join in and do my part,” shares Jannat.

Jannat’s father, Tariq Ahmad Patloo, a third-generation houseboat owner, has long been organising voluntary lake-cleaning drives. But now he is not alone, as his young daughter also spends her Sundays retrieving plastic bottles, wrappers, and other waste that accumulate in the lake.

How the Patloos began their social work

It was 25 years ago when Tariq Ahmad Patloo’s journey as a social worker began — not with a campaign or a meeting, but with a moment of quiet reflection. One day, while rowing his shikara on Dal Lake, he saw a foreign tourist bend down to remove a cigarette butt floating in the water. The sight struck him deeply. “It made me realise how carelessly we treat a resource that others consider paradise,” Tariq recalls. That single act of concern from an outsider became his turning point. From that day, he began his mission to protect the Dal’s delicate ecosystem.

His daughter Jannat joined him when she was just five, eager to help her father clean the lake’s surface of plastic and weeds. Now 14, she continues to accompany him on daily cleaning drives, her small hands once mimicking his movements, now matching them with purpose and resolve.

In 2020, when the pandemic struck Kashmir, their efforts took a new form. After Tariq contracted the virus, he repurposed his shikara into a ‘floating ambulance’ to ferry patients and deliver medicines to those stranded in the lake’s interior hamlets. What began as an act of preservation had evolved into one of compassion — a mission to protect both the Dal and its people.

The improvised shikara ambulance, created with the support of an NGO, was fitted with a loudspeaker, which Patloo used to spread awareness about safety precautions during the pandemic.

His innovation not only saved lives but also caught national attention, earning him a mention in Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Mann Ki Baat radio programme.

Today, alongside the ambulance initiative, Patloo continues his efforts on another front — supporting his daughter Jannat’s mission to clean Dal Lake.

A teenager who works for the livelihood of many

According to Jannat, her drive to clean Dal Lake stems from seeing how her family and many others earn their livelihood from it through houseboats and shikaras that serve tourists.

“It is not just my father who depends on the lake for income, but there are scores of others whose survival is tied to it. That means we must clean the lake regularly to prevent it from getting choked or silted,” she tells The Better India.

She adds that even at a young age, she has understood how closely Kashmir’s tourism is tied to Dal Lake and that if the lake is destroyed, tourists across the world may stop coming altogether.

“A couple of years ago, I went to the Rainawari side of Dal Lake and the stench from pollution was so strong. But after repeated cleaning drives, that part of the lake is now cleaner, with tourists thronging the area,” Jannat recalls.

Dal Lake, once the pride of Kashmir’s natural heritage, has faced rapid environmental degradation due to untreated sewage, encroachments, and excessive siltation. Today, Jannat’s efforts have become a quiet symbol of grassroots environmental activism.

National recognition

Her relentless efforts to clean Dal Lake have not only captured national attention but also earned her a place in the curriculum of a school in Hyderabad. A Class 3 English lesson titled “Jannat’s Jheel (Heaven’s Lake)” in the Telangana State Board curriculum introduces children to Jannat, who cleans Dal Lake with her father.

Written in simple language, the lesson celebrates her love for the lake and her message of environmental responsibility, ending with a call for students across India to get inspired by Jannat.

Even Prime Minister Narendra Modi praised her initiative on his Mann Ki Baat radio programme, calling her an inspiration for youth-led environmental stewardship.

“When Prime Minister Modi praised my efforts, I felt proud. His words gave me even more enthusiasm to work passionately for Dal Lake, which is a source of identity for the people of Kashmir,” Jannat says with a smile.

However, she hopes the government will deploy modern machines and technology to clean the lake regularly so that pollution does not push it closer to death.

“If the government cleaned the lake daily with manpower and advanced machinery, real change would be possible. Penalties should also be imposed on those who pollute the waters. I have tried to make people understand the fragility of the lake and the need to sustain it, but negligence and lack of awareness persist — issues that the government must address,” she says.

How Jannat inspires and motivates others

Her efforts have also touched those who share the waters with her.

“Jannat is an inspiration and true motivation for all of us who live and work on Dal Lake,” says Manzoor Kundroo, secretary general of the All Kashmir Houseboat Owners Association.

“She was just five when she began cleaning the lake with her father, collecting plastic and waste even during the harsh winters. For eight years now, she has been doing this selfless work for future generations. Many children here, including my own son, have started joining in, saying, ‘If Jannat can, why can’t I?’”

Similarly, Adil Ahmad, a shikara boatman, shares, “Every Sunday morning when I row past my boat, I see Jannat with a basket in her hand, pulling out plastic from the water. We take visitors to show them the beauty of the lake, but she is the one protecting that beauty.”

Becoming a green ambassador

Though Jannat has not received much support from people living in and around the lake, she says her campaign, ‘Dal Lake for the Sunday’, has found encouragement from environmental activists and the government.

“Under the Azmat-e-Dal (Glory of Dal) programme, I, along with environmental activists, have distributed dustbins to shikara riders — Kashmir’s traditional wooden boatmen — to help keep the lake and its surroundings clean,” she says.

According to Nadeem Qadri, an environmental lawyer from Kashmir, Jannat’s efforts to clean Dal Lake at such a young age speak volumes about her awareness and commitment to the Valley’s fragile ecology.

“At this tender age, she has become a green ambassador for Dal Lake. I am deeply impressed by her small yet significant efforts to protect the lake from pollution and choking. I wish we could all work together to restore the glory of Dal and other lakes across the Valley,” Qadri tells The Better India.

As the sun sets over Dal Lake, Jannat rows her small boat through the calm waters, collecting every piece of plastic. Around her, the reflection of the houseboats dances on the surface she’s trying so hard to protect.

“If I can clean even a little, it’s worth it,” she says softly, eyes scanning the lake. “Dal is our pride — and our responsibility.”

Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: thebetterindia.com