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Sukna Lake

Sukhna Lake in Chandigarh, India is an artificial lake at the foothills of the Shivalik hills. This 3-km² rain fed lake was created in 1958 by damming the Sukhna Choe, a seasonal stream coming down from the Shivalik Hills. The lake is 1.52 km long and 1.49 km wide. After completion in 1958, the water-spread area of the lake was 188 ha and the average depth was 4.69 m. It had a depth of 18 feet originally, but due to heavy silt deposits, the depth reduced to 8 feet 6 inches and area to 1. 5 sq km. Sukhna is a sanctuary for many exotic migratory birds like the Siberian duck, Storks and Cranes, during the winter months.  About 30 species are residents and the rest are migratory.

In 1988, Ministry of Environment and Forest, Government of India, recognized 228.66 ha of Sukhna Lake as one of the National Wetlands that needed priority far conservation. It was initially spread over 230 hac but has been reduced to around 154 ha in 2007. The reduced area is a result of siltation. Over a period of time, the silted part was converted into Sukhna Lake Reserve Forest. The water level has come down from around 5m in 1958 to 2m in 2004. Between 1958 and 1962, nearly 20% of the lake got silted since a lot of soil erosion took place from the agricultural land in the 4,200-ha catchment. In 1988, 2,600 ha were converted into the Sukhna Wildlife Sanctuary. 800 ha of the acquired catchment were taken up by the reserve forest and the remaining 800 ha are agricultural land.  The lake has lost nearly 66 per cent area and water holding capacity till 2009.

The catchment area of the lake has rugged terrain, steep slopes and the soils are predominantly alluvial sandy embedded with layers of clay and are highly susceptible to soil erosion by water run-off action. The water flowing into the lake is heavily loaded with silt. Due to higher run-off, there is accelerated pace of erosion in the catchment areas, resulting in the higher rate of sedimentation in the reservoir of Sukhna Lake and streambeds. The silt deposited year after year in the lakebed reduces the water storage capacity, depth, water spread area and submergence area at lake level. Despite a Supreme Court ban on constructions near the Sukhna Lake, rules continue to be flouted. Chandigarh has allowed constructions in the southern part of the lake, which according to the master plan is supposed to be a ‘green belt' and ‘no-construction zone'.

In 2003, Haryana irrigation expert came up with desilting plan, to clear silt of the lake. In 2005, Sukhna Lake was declared as Silence Zone by the Administration. About 30 fishes died at the surface of the lake in 2008, due to over population and lack of oxygen and also because of the presence of silt in the lake. The administration has approved a Rs 73-crore plan for desilting in 2008. To improve tourism infrastructure at Sukhna Lake, the government has sanctioned Rs.27.3 million in 2009. The resident, alleging that the Haryana Government had acquired the notified forestland for the development of township, filed 1st PIL of the lake in 2003. The PIL was dismissed in the same year, which saw the resident filing special leave petition (SPV) in 2005, which was also dismissed later in the same year.