The restoration of Alleri tank has been now going on for nearly a month and without no doubt, the lake has changed a lot.
The de-watering has completely finished with only leaving two pits of water for fish, turtles and other aquatic animals to stay during the restoration progress.
Invasive weeds have been removed from all parts of the pond and the de-silting work has started. The sludge which has built up during the years has decreased the water holding capacity massively and reduced the percolation rate. The silt is now being used to construct a constructed wetland at Alleri Tank.
The lake will be split into two major parts. On the north side, a large recharge pit will be located, it will act as the main storage for the incoming water. The northern side will be separated by a strong bund. The water will be forced to flow in curves before entering the recharge pit. Plants like vetiver will be planted in order to naturally filter out heavy metals and other pollutants. Our final goal is to let clean water into the central recharge pit only.
Till date, the dividing bund has been formed. The Alleri tank is being de-silted day per day and amazing things can already be witnessed. After seeing only sewage water flowing in for, for the first time, clean groundwater was seen at the lake.
Still, lots of silt needs to be moved to reach our goal of constructing a constructed wetland. Stay tuned for further updates.
Lakes of India 