Thousands of fish dead in Srinagar's Nigeen Lake

Dead fish covered the surface of the Nigeen Lake, where high-end tourists stay in houseboats.

Residents living around the lake said they had never seen such a phenomenon before. "I have been living here for 40 years now and this is for the first time I have seen this happen," Bashir Ahmad, a houseboat owner, said.

A spokesman of the Fisheries Department said the death of the fish has taken place due to depletion of oxygen and fluctuation of temperature in the Lake.

He assured that the department will take required precautionary measures for the protection of fish.

"In summer, high temperature spells, the high oxidation of nutrients and brisk depletion of oxygen levels in the lake can lead to such a phenomenon. Also, due to a sudden fall in temperature some adverse effect must have been caused on the fish life," the spokesman said.