Entries about lakes

Udaipur is a major city in the Indian state of Rajasthan. It is the historic capital of the kingdom of Mewar in the former Rajputana Agency. Maharana Udai Singh of the Sisodia clan of Rajputs founded the city in 1559 AD and shifted his capital from the city of Chittorgarh to Udaipur.

The lakes of the city being interconnected form a lake system which supports and sustains the ground water recharge, water availability for drinking, agriculture, industries and is a source of employment through tourism. The lake system has three main lakes in its upper catchment area, six lakes within its municipal boundary and one lake in the downstream. The Udaipur Lake System can be divided into the following categories:
Upper lakes : Lake Badi, Chhota Madar & Bada Madar.
City Lakes : Lake Pichola, Fateh Sagar Lake, SwaroopSagar, RangSagar, Kumharia Talab, GoverdhanSagar.
Downstream Lake : Lake Udai Sagar.
River : River Ahar.
Udaipur, with its picturesque landscape, lakes, and historic palaces and architecture, is a major destination for most tourists, both domestic and foreign nationals visiting the state. With numerous hotels to serve visiting tourists, Udaipur is home to some of the world's most renowned and the country's best luxury hotels and resorts.
Udaipur is well known for handicrafts such as paintings, marble articles, silver arts and terracotta. The Shilpgram is a platform where regional handicraft and hand-loom products is developed. Craft bazaars are organized by the Shilpgram, with an aim to encourage the regional arts and crafts, the handicraft and hand-loom works.

Sahelion ki Bari

Sahelion ki Bari is a major garden and a popular tourist space in the northern part of the city.

The garden with its fountains and kiosks, a lotus pool and marble elephants, was laid for a group of forty-eight young women attendants who accompanied a princess to Udaipur as part of her dowry.

City Palace

Standing on the east bank of Lake Pichola is a massive series of palaces built at different times from 1559.

Its main entrance is through the triple-arched gate - the Tripolia, built in 1725.

This gate leads to a series of courtyards, overlapping parations, terraces, corridors and gardens.

The palace now houses a museum with many antique articles, paintings, decorative furniture and utensils from the royal era.

Lake Palace

Situated over an island in Lake Pichola, the Lake Palace was constructed to serve as a royal summer palace. Built of white marble, the palace is now a luxury 5 Star hotel, operating under the "Taj Hotels Resorts and Palaces" banner.

Jag Mandir

Jag Mandir is a palace built on an island in the Lake Pichola. Also known as the "Lake Garden Palace", it was constructed by three Maharanas of the Mewar kingdom. The construction started in 1551, and got completed by 1652. The royal family used the palace as a summer resort and pleasure palace.

Monsoon Palace

Monsoon Palace, (in the background) also known as Sajjan Garh Palace, was built as an astronomical centre to keep track of the movement of monsoon clouds in the area and also served as the summer resort of the Maharanas.
Built with white marble, it is located on Bansdara peak of the Aravalli hill range at an elevation of 944 m (3100 ft) above mean sea level. The palace offers a panoramic view of the city's lakes, palaces and surrounding countryside.

Lake Fatehsagar

Lake Fatehsagar is an artificial lake situated in the north-west part of Udaipur. The lake was originally built by Maharana Jai Singh and later reconstructed and extended by Maharana Fateh Singh. It is one of the most popular destinations in the city for tourists and the city residents.

Lake Pichola

Lake Pichola is an artificial fresh water lake and is one of the several contiguous lakes in the city of Udaipur. The lake’s surroundings and the several islands within the lake have been developed over the centuries, with palaces, marble temples, family mansions, bathing ghats and chabutaras (a raised platform, normally within a courtyard).

Moti Magri or Pearl Hill

Moti Magri or Pearl Hill, is a memorial of the Rajput hero Maharana Pratap. It is basically a small hilloc, atop of which there is a bronze statue of the Maharana astride his favourite horse "Chetak". It was initiated by Maharana Bhagwat Singh Mewar, and carried over and completed with the help of a public trust.

Location : Bargi Dam is located on the Jabalpur - Nagpur NH - 7 highway. About 40 kms / 45 mins. from Jabalpur city, Tourist Destination Bargi Dam is built on Narmada river. Tourists can enjoy water-sports in Bargi Dam .Bargi Dam is one of the first completed dams out of the chain of 30 major dams to be constructed on Narmada River in Madhya Pradesh, India.

The dam construction work started in 1974 and was completed in 1990 when the dam was filled to its complete capacity.The height of the dam is 69 m and length 5.4 km.

A lake of about 75 km in length and 4.5 km width, spreading over 267.97 km². In Jabalpur, Mandla and Seoni districts is formed when the water is impounded up to the dam FRL of 422.76 m.

Considering the tourism potential of this dam, Madhya Pradesh State Tourism Development Corporation (MPSTDC) has encouraged water sports in Bargi dam. For accommodation, MP Tourism has its hotel and restaurant in Bargi Dam. Here no other restaurant or hotel for accommodation is available

There is direct bus service from Jabalpur to Bargi so reaching Bargi Dam is not a problem. One can enjoy Cruise ride, motor boat ride, speed boat ride in reservoir water. Those who are traveling from Jabalpur to Kanha National Park or vice versa, can do enroute visit of Bargi Dam.

The main attraction of Bargi Dam and the surrounding area is the calm that the water provides by introducing a soothing feeling in oneself.

The journey to Bargi Dam is through picturesque landscape which belongs to the tribal areas. It is hard to believe that how much diversity a country can offer, different language, different people. Truly said….India is Incredible.

Situated around 45 km south of Leh, the Hemis Monastery is the most important monastery belonging to the Drupka order. The history of the monastery states that it was founded by Stagsang Raspa Nawang Gyatso in 1630.

Inside
The courtyard is entered from the northeast side. The stone steps in the right of the main courtyard leads upto two huge temples - the Tshogs-khang and the Dukhang The walls are adorned with paintings of Sakyamuni or the Historical Buddha. Paintings of other Buddha figures and Tantric deities like Hevajra and Samvara are also seen on the walls of the Du-khang.

Festivals
An annual festival to celebrate the victory of Guru Padmasmbhava over the evil forces marks the highlight of the monastery. The festival, known as the Hemis festival, is celebrated on the tenth and eleventh day of fifth Tibetan month as the birthday of Padmasambhava, the founder of Tibetan Buddhism. During the festival, masked dances are performed with themes that invariably show a fight against evil and infidel and consequent win of good and Buddhism.

Once every twelve year, a special attractions draws Buddhist pilgrims to the monastery - the unfurling of the giant thanka which is decorated with pearls and other precious stones.

The confluence of the Zanskar River and the Indus is 3 km southeast of Nimmu village in Ladakh.This place is the meeting point of two rivers Indus & Zanskar. This place is famous for water activities....

Magnet Hill is a so-called "gravity hill" located near Leh in Ladakh, India.The “magnet Hill” is located on the Leh-Kargil-Srinagar national highway, about 30 km from Leh, at a height of 11,000 feet above sea level. The magnetic hill has become a popular stop for domestic tourists on car journeys..

Pangong Tso , Tibetan for "long, narrow, enchanted lake", also referred to as Pangong Lake, is a lake in the Himalayas situated at a height of about 4,350 m (14,270 ft). It is 134 km (83 mi) long and extends from India to Tibet. Approximately 60% of the length of the lake lies in Tibet. The lake is 5 km (3.1 mi) wide at its broadest point. All together it covers 604 km. During winter the lake freezes completely, despite being saline water. It is not part of Indus river basin area and geographically a separate land locked river basin.
The brackish water of the lake has very low micro-vegetation. Guides report that there are no fish or other aquatic life in the lake, except for some small crustaceans. On the other hand, visitors see numerous ducks and gulls over and on the lake surface. There are some species of scrub and perennial herbs that grow in the marshes around the lake.

The Chang La (el. 5,360 m or 17,590 ft) is a high mountain pass in Ladakh, India. It is the second highest motorable road in the world. Chang La is approached from Leh via kharu and sekti village by a black top road. The climb is very steep and requires a careful drive. The descent from Chang La towards Tangtse or Darbuk is again very steep. The place is a must go for nature lovers.

The Chang La is on the route to Pangong Lake from Leh. The name literally means "Pass towards the South" or "Pass in the South" (Chang = south, La = Pass).

This road is usually open all year, but it can be closed anytime when the access is not cleared of snow. The Changla Pass is the main gateway for the Changthang Plateau situated in the Himalayas. The pass is located on the 134 km-long (83 mi) road between the Pangong Lake and Leh.

Alchi is a village and monastery in the Leh district of Ladakh region of Jammu and Kashmir, situated on the bank of Indus River 70 km downstream from the capital in Leh. Unlike the other gompas in Ladakh, Alchi is situated on lowland, not on a hilltop.

The village is famous for the existence of one of the oldest monasteries in Ladakh (a national heritage) Alchi Monastery, mainly known for its magnificent, and well-preserved 11th- or 12th-century wall paintings, all in an Indo-Himalayan style.

Alchi is a small village with several tourist homestays, most offering modern conveniences for overnight stays, The best time to visit is from June to September.

The Nimoo Bazgo power project is a run-of-the-river power project on the Indus River situated at village Alchi,. The project was conceived on July 1, 2001 and approved on June 8, 2005, and construction began on June 9, 2005.

Sukhna Lake is a beautiful lake that lies in the foothills of Shivalik range. The unique thing about Sukhna is that it is a manmade lake. It is a 3 km long lake that was created in the year 1958.

It was done by damming the Sukhna Choe, which is a seasonal stream flowing down from the Shivalik hills. . Originally the seasonal flow entered the lake directly causing heavy siltation. To check the inflow of silt, land measuring 2542 hectares was acquired in the catchments area and put under vegetation. The curvilinear profile of the promenade along the banks of Sukhna hums with activity from dawn to dusk, reflecting changing moods of the day.

Sukhna is an inseparable part of the city. Le Corbusier had foreseen that the residents of the city would be drawn towards it for the 'care of the body and spirit'.

People visit this place in the morning to enjoy the cool breeze and the beauty of nature. Chandigarh Sukhna Lake serves as a great picnic spot and an apt place for pursuing water sport activities like boating, yachting and water skiing etc. The atmosphere over here is very serene and thus apt for meditating. Also, you can savor the melodious humming of birds. People come here in the evening time to forget their worries and relax for a while. So, if you want to rejuvenate yourself, then Sukhna Lake is the perfect destination for you.

Sukhna is a sanctuary for many exotic migratory birds like the Siberian duck, Storks and Cranes, during the winter months. The Lake has been declared as a protected national wetland by the Government of India.

During summers, there are streams of men, women and children from all walks of life offering voluntary service to desilt the lake bed for about three months. This annual ritual has been a regular feature since long.