DDA plans to start Bhalswa lake conservation

Bhalswa Lake was formed from a meandering loop left behind by the Yamuna, and is encroached by landfill, settlements and the Bhalswa Dairy colony

The Delhi Development Authority (DDA) is discussing a proposal to start conservation and rejuvenation work on Bhalswa Lake in north-west Delhi, which is now known more for the landfill site adjoining it than the fact that it was once shaped like a horseshoe and was nearly comparable in size to the 121-acre Nainital Lake in Nainital, Uttarakhand.

Garbage and dairy waste in Bhalswa Lake in April 2025. (HT Archive)

DDA has floated a tender for a specialised project focused on soil investigation and structural designing of a reinforced cement concrete (RCC) wall along the lake to demarcate it from the landfill site. The move comes as part of broader conservation efforts being taken to conserve water bodies under DDA across the city.

“The project aims to create a structural blueprint that would support long-term protection of Bhalswa Lake from further erosion and encroachment, while enabling ecological restoration. The lake has been neglected for years,” said a DDA official.

Bhalswa Lake was formed from a meandering loop left behind by the Yamuna. The lake has now been encroached by landfill, settlements and the sprawling Bhalswa Dairy colony.

The estimated cost of the project for initial soil investigation is ₹2.54 lakh and the work is expected to be completed within two months, officials said.

The initiative is part of DDA’s drive to preserve urban water bodies that are rapidly deteriorating due to unplanned construction and waste dumping. Officials said the planned RCC wall will serve both as a protective barrier and a foundation for further beautification and landscaping initiatives.

DDA is already involved in a case before the National Green Tribunal on conservation of several water bodies in the city. This project follows a series of smaller conservation attempts at Bhalswa, which have seen limited success in the absence of durable structural intervention.

In a spot check in May, HT had found that while garbage dumping on the eastern edge near the Bhalswa golf course has been reduced, the lake’s western flank is a toxic mess. Dairy waste, plastic, and household sewage continue to be dumped directly into the lake, turning it into a foul, semi-solid mass. Cut off from the Yamuna by an embankment built in 1964, Bhalswa Lake has since lost its primary natural water source.