5/5 Ravinder P. 1 year ago on Google
Sukhna
Lake
in
Chandigarh,
India,
is
a
reservoir
at
the
foothills
(Shivalik
hills)
of
the
Himalayas.
This
3
km²
rainfed
lake
was
created
in
1958
by
damming
the
Sukhna
Choe,
a
seasonal
stream
coming
down
from
the
Shivalik
Hills.
Originally,
the
seasonal
flow
entered
the
lake
directly
causing
heavy
siltation.
To
check
the
inflow
of
silt,
25.42
km²
of
land
was
acquired
in
the
catchment
area
and
put
under
vegetation.
In
1974,
the
Choe
was
diverted
and
made
to
bypass
the
lake
completely,
the
lake
being
fed
by
three
siltation
pots,
minimising
the
entry
of
silt
into
the
lake
itself.
The
lake
was
created
by
Le
Corbusier
and
the
Chief
Engineer
P
L
Verma.
To
preserve
its
tranquility,
Corbusier
insisted
on
two
things:
that
it
be
forbidden
for
motor
boats
to
circulate
in
the
water,
and
for
vehicular
traffic
to
be
prohibited
on
top
of
the
dam
(promenade).
The
lake
is
fringed
by
a
golf
course
to
the
south,
and
Nek
Chand's
famous
Rock
Garden
of
Chandigarh
to
its
west.
The
lake
is
facing
serious
issues
like
weed
overgrowth,
catchment
adequacy
and
silting
that
are
significantly
shrinking
its
size
and
depth.
A
project
team,
under
Parasu
Ram
Mishra,
was
deployed
to
address
the
issue
and
take
remedial
measures,
which
halted
the
sedimentation,
for
a
while.
Additionally,
it
has
become
the
subject
of
litigation
between
Chandigarh
and
Punjab.
Silting
has
taken
its
toll
and
the
volume
of
the
lake
has
been
reduced
to
56%
of
its
original.
The
lake
is
shrinking
rapidly
due
to
siltation
and
lack
of
inflow.
It
was
initially
hoped
that
the
work
of
desilting
could
be
undertaken
in
summers
at
a
war
footing
and
dry
dredging
could
be
undertaken
at
a
fraction
of
cost
to
save
Sukhna
in
the
coming
years.
Unfortunately,
the
ground
realities
seem
to
be
different.
Due
to
heavy
rain
in
August
and
September
Sukhna
was
filled
up
again
and
flood
gates
were
being
opened.
