Thane: Hundreds of fish were found dead in a lake in Maharashtra’s Thane district, triggering anger among residents who blamed untreated industrial effluents for the incident, officials said on Friday.

The fish were found dead in the Milapnagar lake located in Dombivli MIDC area on Thursday. Local citizens claimed that the lake turned black and a foul smell spread in the vicinity after water from nearby chemical units allegedly seeped into it.

Officials from the Maharashtra Pollution Control Board (MPCB) and Kalyan-Dombivli Municipal Corporation visited the site and collected water samples for testing. A civic official said preliminary inspection points to possible discharge of industrial waste into the lake.

Residents of Milapnagar and surrounding MIDC areas have demanded immediate action against units flouting pollution norms. They alleged that such incidents have occurred in the past, but no permanent solution has been found.

MPCB officials said a probe has been ordered, and action will be taken if untreated effluents are found to have been released.