The recent meeting of the newly appointed Lieutenant Governor of Jammu and Kashmir, Girish Chander Murmu, with the officials at the helm of affairs in Lakes and Waterways Development Authority (LAWDA) is not the first of its kind exercise. The LAWDA has been set up by the J&K government through an act to ensure the welfare of Dal Lake in Srinagar. The authority is mandated to take twin actions against sources of pollutants that have poisoned the lake’s waters while cracking down on illegal encroachments. But it is also a known fact that the size of the water body has shrunk to less than half in the past three decades. Not only that, the water quality of the lake has also gone down drastically due to unremitting pollution. This ecological vandalism has cast a shadow on not just the aquatic life but the whole ecosystem of the precious water body that has been termed by many commentators as a jewel in the crown of Srinagar’s glorious history. That this vandalism has been taking place right under the nose of LAWDA should amply demonstrate that something is seriously wrong somewhere with the authority or the system that needs to be fixed immediately if Dal has to be saved. Reams and reams of papers have been written on the ‘slow death’ of the lake. Environmentalists have even prophesized that the lake will cease to exist in coming decades because it will be unable to sustain the inflow of pollutants from human sources amid rampant population growth around the lake coupled with illegal encroachments. Successive government have spent billions of rupees to provide some succor to the lake’s dying ecosystem but these interventions have yielded little to no results. For instance, the LAWDA has failed to curb the mammoth growth of weed that threatens to kill the water body. Although some machines have been procured for dredging, they are clearly insufficient. Also, it is common knowledge that a nexus between real estate mafia and official machinery has willfully allowed illegal encroachment of the lake. This nexus needs to be broken. LG Murmu’s administration has an uphill task. Dal Lake has been a graveyard of many a reputations and it will not be easy for JK’s first LG either. A twin-pronged strategy to restore the ecosystem of the lake while going hard and fast against human and industrial sources of pollutants as well as illegal encroachments may help in restoring the glory of Dal Lake.