Maharashtra: 50,000-Year-Old Lonar Lake In Buldhana Turns Pink; Locals Surprised

In a surprising development, the colour of water in Maharashtra's Lonar lake has turned pink, leaving many surprised at the overnight change, reports Zee News.

Notably, the 113-hectare Lonar lake had formed after a meteorite hit the Earth some 50,000 years ago. It is a popular tourist hub and also attracts scientists from all over the world.

Experts have attributed the phenomena to the salinity and presence of algae in the water body. They said that this is not the first time that the colour change has happened, but this time it is more glaring.

Gajanan Kharat, member of the Lonar lake conservation and development committee, reportedly said, "There are algae in the water body. The salinity and algae can be responsible for this change."

"There is no oxygen below one meter of the lake's water surface. There is an example of a lake in Iran, where water becomes reddish due to an increase in salinity," he noted.

He attributed the change in colour to the increased salinity in the lake due to lower levels of water as compared to previous year and change in the behaviour of algae because of atmospheric changes.

Dr Madan Suryavanshi, head of the geography department of Aurangabad's Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar Marathwada University, said, "In case of a natural phenomenon, there are fungi which generally give a greenish colour to water most of the times. This (the current colour change) seems to be a biological change in the Lonar crater."