The charm of the Maotha lake situated outside the historic Amber Fort, near here, will be restored with its replenishment with water supplied from Banas river’s Bisalpur dam. The lake, which collects rain water flowing down from the nearby hills, has at present very little water after it remained dried-up for several months.
The picturesque lake, which has the “Kesar Kyari” garden in its middle, was the main source of water for the Amber Palace and common people before the erstwhile royal capital was shifted to the newly-built Jaipur city in 18th century.
The Water Resources Department’s plan to fill up the lake artificially will improve the ground water recharge, help in the supply of drinking water to the residents of Amber town and provide water to wild animals in the region. This is the second such exercise being undertaken after 2012 to revive traditional water sources and restore environmental balance.
Public Health Engineering Department’s Principal Secretary Sandeep Verma said here on Tuesday that the Bisalpur dam in Tonk district, which was full to the brim after an increase in water inflow from its catchment areas during monsoon, was the “natural choice” as source of water for Maotha lake. The dam is currently supplying water to Jaipur, Tonk and Ajmer towns.
Mr. Verma said the Maotha lake’s capacity was 300 million litres, which was equivalent to one day’s water supply from Bisalpur to Jaipur. “The water body’s replenishment will increase the water table of local sources by about 5 metres, which will give a major relief to the town’s residents,” he said.
‘No adverse impact’
Mr. Verma said there was no possibility of adverse impact by the supply of water to Maotha lake on the availability of drinking water in Jaipur and other towns, for which the Bisalpur dam had emerged as a lifeline during the last decade.