The dying lake

Bhopal’s Upper Lake could vanish, thanks to poor management and a detrimental city development plan

- SRAVANI SARKAR

Haseen taaron ki aankhon se bahaa, aab Qile ke pass us paani ka talaab

(The water shed from the eyes of beautiful stars/ that lake near the fort)

POET INAYATULLAH KHAN

‘Naadaan’ described Bhopal’s Upper Lake thus in 1785. The lake has found reference in other literary works, too, like in poet Basit Bhopali’s 1950s couplet, where he wonders, “Talaab ka paani hai ki chandni sayyal (Is it the lake’s water or liquid moonlight)….”

It is not just shayars (poets) of yore, but also today’s young who cannot stop gushing about the lake. Ananya Choudhary, 12, is a regular visitor to the lake. “This is such a beautiful lake and so many people get drinking water from it, too,” she says. “I want it to remain safe and beautiful so that future generations can also see the lake and benefit from it.”

With a catchment area of 361sqkm and spanning Bhopal and Sehore districts, the Upper Lake or Bada Talaab is the capital’s lifeline. It provides drinking water to one-third of the city’s population. Together with the Lower Lake (Chhota Talaab), it is a designated wetland (Bhoj Wetland) and a Ramsar site. The lake got the international tag owing to its biodiversity and for being a habitat of the endangered sarus crane.