Launched in 2018, Badkhal lake revival project behind schedule

Bijendra Ahlawat

Faridabad, March 24

The Badkhal lake revival project launched in 2018 has been running behind the deadline, according to sources. The project has been able to achieve only half of the completion target so far.

60% and 18% work on retaining wall (bundh) and marina, respectively, completed so far

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40% work on a parking lot concluded

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Previous targets

• December 2020
• December 2021
• June 2022

While the Rs 79-crore project was expected to be completed by June, sources in the district administration claim it might take another year.

While the construction of the retaining wall (bundh) and marina has reached 60 and 18 per cent of the target, respectively, the work on the parking lot has reached 40 per cent, said the district administration sources.

The sewage treatment plant, a vital component of the project, has reached 100 per cent completion and has been on the trial run for the past few weeks, officials of Faridabad Smart City Limited (FSCL), which is carrying out the project, said.

The plant will be supplying around 10 MLD of treated water to the lake after the lake bed is ready. For this purpose, the work of laying pipelines is under way and is likely to be completed by September, said an official.

The project missed the deadline of December 2020, December 2021 and June 2022.

Spread over 42 acres in the Aravallis, the lake, which was a famous tourist spot till 2000, went dry due to large-scale mining and lack of upkeep. Though the revival project took off in 2018, it remained stalled or disrupted for long in the absence of no-objection certificate from the Forest Department for the removal of trees and the later the pandemic.

Vikram Singh, Deputy Commissioner who is also holding the charge of the CEO of the FSCL, said as the work was in full swing, efforts were on to complete the project by the end of this year.