Badkhal Lake | |
---|---|
Location | Faridabad |
Coordinates | 28°24′54″N77°16′34″E / 28.415°N 77.276°E |
Basin countries | India |
Settlements | Faridabad |
Badkhal Lake is a natural lake situated in Badkhal village near Faridabad, in the Indian state of Haryana, about 32 kilometers from the national capital of Delhi. Fringed by the hills of the Aravalli Range, this was a man-made embankment. Owing to unchecked mining in neighbouring areas, the lake began drying up two decades back and is now totally dried up. There are functional Haryana Tourism Corporation restaurants in the vicinity. A flower show is held every spring here. Its name is most probably derived from the Persian word beydakhal, which means free from interference. Close to Badkhal Lake is the Peacock Lake. It is a biodiversity area within the Northern Aravalli leopard wildlife corridor stretching from Sariska Tiger Reserve to Delhi.
Historical places around the lake include the 10th century ancient Surajkund reservoir (15 km north) and Anangpur Dam (16 km north), the similarly dried up Damdama Lake, Tughlaqabad Fort, Adilabad ruins and the Chhatarpur Temple. [1] There are several dozen lakes formed in the abandoned open pit mines in and around the sanctuary. It is contiguous to the seasonal waterfalls in Pali-Dhuaj-Kot villages of Faridabad, [2] the sacred Mangar Bani hill forest and the Asola Bhatti Wildlife Sanctuary.
The lake was built soon after the country got Independence in 1947 to facilitate water supply to the nearby farms. It was built by constructing a bund between two low-lying Aravalli hills, to trap run-off for irrigation. In 1972, the Government of Haryana built a 30-room resort off the lake, which was a major tourist attraction during the '70s through to the '90s, with boating and other activities. Migratory birds also used to visit the lake. [3]
Construction boom in the National Capital Region drove quarrying and mining in the area at a large scale. As illegal mining and quarrying mushroomed, the downward water flow to the lake was not just obstructed, but aquifers were also damaged. In addition, deforestation and rampant borewell digging in the area owing to urbanisation worsened the situation, leaving the lake high and dry. A number of mineral water companies have also illegally sourced water from the lake.
Since 2009, the lake has been observed as completely dried up, leaving only grassy terrain. Unusually low rainfall in the area has also been cited.
In January 2010, the lake and the nearby Surajkund was filled up with water in conjunction with 2010 Commonwealth Games. But in March 2014, in a survey report released by the Delhi Parks and Gardens Society (DPGS), under the Government of Delhi's department of environment, the lake was completely dry and completely dependent on rains for water. The report also revealed 190 of 611 water bodies in Delhi had also gone dry. [4]
The initial renewal efforts were entrusted with the state irrigation department. In 2017, they tried to replenish the lake bed by supplying water from the Okhla canal, but it was found to be an unviable option. The state government then approached Manav Rachna University in 2018, which prepared a report suggesting that Sewage Treatment Plant (STP) water may be used for the same. Afterwards, experts from Indian Institute of Technology-Roorkee were chosen to collect soil samples and conduct infiltration tests on the lake bed. They carried out a geo-technical survey of the lake under the Smart Cities Mission and submitted its report a year later. [5]
A lake revival project worth Rs 79 crore was also taken up in 2018. This included the STP project which aims to fill up the lake with regular discharge from the plant to a level of 6 metre in 300 days. Worth Rs 30 crore, the project was sanctioned by the state government in November that year. But it was reported in October, 2019 that a delay in formal clearances by the Forest Department and the Pollution Control Board had halted all work. [6]
As of 2019, various other measures are being discussed at the government level to restore the lake, but damaged aquifers, low groundwater level and disturbance of water catchment pathways cast aspersions. Environmental experts have called the governments plans a simple renovation, but not a full renewal. [7]
The Aravalli Range is a mountain range in Northern-Western India, running approximately 670 km (420 mi) in a south-west direction, starting near Delhi, passing through southern Haryana, Rajasthan, and ending in Ahmedabad Gujarat. The highest peak is Guru Shikhar on Mount Abu at 1,722 m (5,650 ft). The Aravalli Range is arguably the oldest geological feature on Earth, having its origin in the Proterozoic era.
Faridabad(Hindi pronunciation:[fəɾiːdɑːbɑːd]) is the most populous city in the Indian state of Haryana and a part of Delhi National Capital Region. It is one of the major satellite cities around Delhi and is located 284 kilometres south of the state capital Chandigarh. The river Yamuna forms the eastern district boundary with Uttar Pradesh. The Government of India included it in the second list of Smart Cities Mission on 24 May 2016. As per the 2021 Delhi Regional Plan, Faridabad is a part of the (CNCR) Central National Capital Region or (DMA) Delhi metropolitan area.
Tughluqabad Fort is a ruined fort in Delhi, India. It was constructed by Ghiyasuddin Tughluq, the founder of the Tughlaq dynasty, of the Delhi Sultanate in 1321 as he established the third historic city of Delhi, but it was later abandoned in 1327. It lends its name to the nearby Tughluqabad residential-commercial area as well as the Tughluqabad Institutional Area. Ghiyasuddin Tughluq also built the Qutub-Badarpur Road, which connected the new city to the Grand Trunk Road. The road is now known as Mehrauli-Badarpur Road. The entry fee for the Fort is Rs. 20 for Indians. Also, nearby is Dr. Karni Singh Shooting Range and Okhla Industrial Area.
Gurgaon district, officially known as Gurugram district, is one of the 22 districts of Haryana in northern India. The city of Gurgaon is the administrative headquarters of the district. The population is 1,514,432. It is one of the southern districts of Haryana. On its north, it is bounded by the district of Jhajjar and the Union Territory of Delhi. Faridabad district lies to its east. To its south lie the districts of Palwal and Nuh. To the west lies Rewari district.
Delhi Ridge, sometimes simply called The Ridge, is a ridge in the Northern Aravalli leopard wildlife corridor in the National Capital Territory of Delhi in India. It is a northern extension of the ancient Aravalli Range, some 1.5 billion years old. The ridge consists of quartzite rocks and extends from the southeast at Tughlaqabad, near the Bhatti mines, branching out in places and tapering off in the north near Wazirabad on the west bank of the river Yamuna, covering about 35 kilometres.
Surajkund is an ancient reservoir of the 10th century located on Southern Delhi Ridge of Aravalli range in Faridabad city of Haryana state about 8 km from South Delhi. Surajkund is an artificial Kund built in the backdrop of the Aravalli hills with an amphitheatre shaped embankment constructed in semicircular form. It is said to have been built by the king Surajpal of the Tomara Rajputs in the 10th century. Tomar, a younger son of Anangpal Tomar – the Rajput ruler of Delhi, was a sun worshipper and he had therefore built a Sun temple on its western bank. Surajkund is known for its annual fair "Surajkund International Craft Mela", 2015 edition of this fair was visited by 1.2 million visitors including 160,000 foreigners with more than 20 countries participating in it.
Chhatarpur Temple is a temple dedicated to the goddess Katyayani. The entire complex of the temple is spread over a wide area of 28 hectares. It is located in Chhatarpur, on the southwestern outskirts of the New Delhi The temple was established in 1974, by Baba Sant Nagpal ji, who died in 1998. His samadhi shrine lies in the premises of the Shiv-Gauri Nageshwar Mandir within the temple complex.
The Anangpur Dam is an Indian hydraulic engineering structure built during the reign of the King Anangpal I of the Tomara Rajputs in the 8th century. It is located near the Anangpur village in Faridabad district, Haryana, India.
Bandhwari is a village dominated by Gurjar community in Gurgaon district in the Indian state of Haryana. It is an important biodiversity area contiguous to Asola Bhatti Wildlife Sanctuary within the Northern Aravalli leopard wildlife corridor. Bandhwari is also nicknamed the "cancer village", because one in every three household has a cancer patient, caused by the mixing of leachate from the garbage landfill into the groundwater.
Gwal Pahari is a village dominated by Gurjar community in Gurugram Mandal in the Gurugram District of Haryana state, India.
Asola-Bhati Wildlife Sanctuary covering 32.71 km2 area on the Southern Delhi Ridge of Aravalli hill range on Delhi-Haryana border lies in Southern Delhi as well as northern parts of Faridabad and Gurugram districts of Haryana state. Biodiversity significance of Ridge lies in its merger with Indo-Gangetic plains, as it is the part of the Northern Aravalli leopard wildlife corridor, an important wildlife corridor which starts from the Sariska National Park in Rajasthan, passes through Nuh, Faridabad and Gurugram districts of Haryana and ends at Delhi Ridge.
Damda reservoir in Sohna, near Gurugram city in Gurugram district in the Indian state of Haryana. Damdama Lake is a small lake in Haryana and was formed when a stone and earthen dam constructed by the British was commissioned for rain water harvesting in 1947. The lake, held by an embankment, is fed mainly by monsoon rain pouring into a trough at the base of the Aravali hills. The lake greets visitors with a water level down to 20 ft (6.1 m). During monsoon the water level reaches up to 50 ft (15 m) - 70 ft (21 m).
Bhindawas Wildlife Sanctuary Ramsar site is located in Jhajjar district, which is about 15 km from Jhajjar in Haryana. On 3 June 2009, it is also declared as bird sanctuary by the Indian Government.
Khaparwas Bird Sanctuary is a bird sanctuary in Jhajjar district, about 80 kilometres (50 mi) west of Delhi). The reserve covers 82.70 hectares. This is an important part of ecological corridor along the route of Sahibi River which traverses from Aravalli hills in Rajasthan to Yamuna via Masani barrage, Matanhail forest, Chhuchhakwas-Godhari, Khaparwas Wildlife Sanctuary, Bhindawas Wildlife Sanctuary, Outfall Drain Number 8 and 6, Sarbashirpur, Sultanpur National Park, Basai and The Lost Lake (Gurugram). It lies 5 km northwest of Bhindawas Bird Sanctuary and 46 km northwest of Sultantpur National Park via road.
Forests Department, Haryana is a department of the Government of Haryana in India that runs and maintains many protected nature areas in the state of Haryana. It has two administrative divisions: Forest and Wildlife. The department is responsible for maintaining National Parks, Wildlife Sanctuaries and Conservation Reserves in Haryana. It also provides a special emphasis on Soil and Moisture Conservation works in the hills to conserve water and deliver it to adjacent farmlands. Two National Parks, eight Wildlife Sanctuaries, two Conservation Reserves, four Animal & Bird Breeding Centres, one Deer park, and 49 herbal parks. Kanwar Pal Gujjar has been the cabinet minister responsible for this department since October 2019. constitute the Protected Area network of the department, covering 0.75% of the state. It also maintains a list of Protected Areas in Haryana.
Blue Bird Lake, Hisar is a resident and endangered migratory bird wetland habitat, lake and recreation area in the town of Hisar, in the Hisar district of Haryana State, India.
Basai wetland, located in Basai village in Gurgaon tehsil in Gurgaon district in Haryana, India, is a flora and fauna rich water body. It is recognised as one of India's Important Bird and Biodiversity Areas and is of global conservation significance as it supports populations of several endangered, vulnerable, and threatened bird species. Basai wetlandis recognised globally as an Important Bird Area (IBA) by the BirdLife International housing 20,000 birds of over 280 species including migratory birds and endangered birds, has not yet been declared a protected wetland by the Government of Haryana.
Pali is an Indian village in the NIT area of Faridabad city of Faridabad district under Faridabad Lok Sabha constituency of Haryana state, well known for being biggest crusher zone of Asia, that also has a seasonal waterfall. It is the part of the Northern Aravalli leopard wildlife corridor, an important wildlife corridor which starts from the Sariska National Park in Rajasthan, passes through Nuh, Faridabad and Gurugram districts of Haryana and ends at Delhi Ridge.
Mangar Bani, a paleolithic archaeological site and sacred grove hill forest next to the Mangar village on Delhi-Haryana border; is in the South Delhi Ridge of Aravalli mountain range in Faridabad tehsil of Faridabad district in the Indian state of Haryana. It lies, immediate south of India's national capital Delhi, within NCR.