Srinagar, Aug. 9 -- Hokersar, the biggest wetland in Srinagar which attracts nearly 13 lakh migratory birds, has got a new lease of life thanks to the Jammu and Kashmir government's recent habitat interventions, but environmentalists insist the practice of draining water from the Ramsar site by opening outlet gates under alleged political pressure is reversing the gains and aiding encroachers to misuse the site's fringes for agriculture purposes.

After encroachments, dismal water retention and neglect over the past three decades when the focus of the administration was on fighting militancy, the Ramsar site, spread over 13.54 sq km in central Kashmir's Srinagar and Budgam districts, is now witnessing a rejuvenation.

Officials say no fre...