Reviving Surajkund’s Glory
By Dr Arvind Kumar
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urajkund, located near the Surajkund village, between the villages of Baharpur and Lakkarpur in Faridabad district of Haryana, is an ancient water reservoir built in the 10th century. It is about 2 kms away to the south west from a more ancient dam of the 8th century called the Anagpur Dam.
It 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 Tomar king Suraj Pal of Tomar dynasty in the 10th century. Surajkund’s lake drainage basin is part of the Aravalli hill ranges, fed from the north western side by a local nallah that initially feeds the Anagpur dam on the upstream. The storage in the lake has been seriously affected since the catchment area contributing flows into the lake from adjoining villages has been used for extensive mining and for large habitations, which has disturbed the drainage system and thus obstructed the gravity flow of rain water from the basin into the reservoir. This situation is stated to have also affected the flora and fauna of the area.
The Haryana Government has developed the area as a tourist spot by introducing an annual crafts ‘Mela’ or “fair” titled “Surajkund Crafts Mela” in the precincts of the lake, which over the years has attracted wide publicity and become an iconic event. The reservoir has been built in the shape of the rising sun with an east ward arc. It is enclosed within a steep embankment made in semi-circular shape made of stepped stones. The reservoir, having an area of 40 ha (99 acres), provides a grand spectacle, and abounds in dancing peacocks. The reservoir is filled up during
every monsoon season but remains dry during summer. The ecological disaster being caused by indiscriminate mining has invited the attention of the Supreme Court of India, which has asked the Haryana Government to stop all mining activities and pumping of groundwater within a 5 kms. radius of the Delhi-Haryana border in the Haryana Ridge and in the Aravali hills.
