The Lake Project

The Completion of the Lake is being offered to The Mother for her 150th birthday on February 21st 2028

The first concrete steps to create the Lake began in 2014, with the construction of a series of small test ponds lined with different materials to find the best option for waterproofing the bed of the Lake to prevent the harvested rainwater from percolating away during the hot summer months.

As a consequence of these tests, it was decided that the Lake will be lined with a sandwich of high quality HDPE foil and geotextile. 

Excavation of Lake Section 1, called the “Test Pond” began in 2021 and it was completed and fully lined up to its full 10 metres height by August 2024. This 1st section of the Matrimandir Lake has the following dimensions: Inner shore length – 95 meters; Outer shore length – 110 meters and it was contained at either end by two concrete Lego block dams.
But the Lake project received a dramatic  setback when, on the very moment that the Test Pond reached its full capacity, during the night of November 30th, the southern Lego block wall slid open  under the pressure of the heavy driving rains of cyclone Fengal. This failure of the dam was totally unexpected and, in that moment, quite a shock. But this setback has been quickly put into perspective.  And it is being followed up by looking again at how best to achieve the goal to finish the Lake by 2028. 

 Lake Section 2, which is approximately 300 meters long, 100 meters wide and 10 meters deep, has already been excavated during 2024 and will be foiled with HDPE liner at the beginning of 2026 Preparations are also now under way to excavate Lake Section 3, to the West.