IMPORTANT LAKES IN INDIA

 

Name	State	Type	Details
Pulicat Lake	Andhra Pradesh	Brackish Water	It encompasses Pulicat Lake Bird Sanctuary; Satish Dhawan Space Centre located here
Kolleru Lake	Andhra Pradesh	Freshwater	Home to migratory birds
Nagarjuna Sagar	Andhra Pradesh	Freshwater	Artificially constructed; Krishna river
Haflong Lake	Assam	Freshwater	High altitude lake
DeeporBeel	Assam	Freshwater	Under Ramsar Convention
Son Beel	Assam	Freshwater (Tectonically formed)	Largest wetland in Assam
Chandubi lake	Assam	Freshwater	Migratory Birds (winter); formed by 1897 earthquake
Kanwar Lake	Bihar	Oxbow (freshwater)	Asia’s largest freshwater oxbow lake;
Hamirsar lake	Gujarat	Artificial	Situated in centre of Bhuj
Kankaria lake	Gujarat	Artificial	During 14th century by Muhammed Shah II
Narayan Sarovar	Gujarat	Artificial freshwater	Pilgrimage site for Hindus
Thol Lake	Gujarat	Lentic lake	Constructed for irrigation purpose
Vastrapur	Gujarat	Freshwater	Narmada River; Picnic spot
Badkal Lake	Haryana	Freshwater	Man made
Blue Bird Lake	Haryana	Freshwater	Migratory Birds, Wetland Habitat
Brahma Sarovar	Haryana	Freshwater	Ancient water pool sacred to Hinduism
Damdama Lake	Haryana	Freshwater	Constructed by British government for Rainwater Harvesting
Karna	Haryana	Freshwater	Connected to great epic Mahabharata
Tilyar	Haryana	Freshwater	Located inside Tilyar Zoo
Chandra Taal	Himachal Pradesh	Fresh water	Ramsar wetland site
Suraj Taal	Himachal Pradesh	Freshwater	Bhaga River inflow
MaharanaPratapSagar	Himachal Pradesh	Freshwater	Ramsar site
Prashar lake	Himachal Pradesh	Holomitic	It has a floating Island
Renuka lake	Himachal Pradesh	Freshwater	It is designated as the Ramsar site
Dal lake	J &K	Warm monomitic	Remnants of  past glacial period
Pangong Tso	Ladakh	Endorheic Lake (saline water)	Indo-China Border
Wular lake	J &K	Tectonic lake (fresh water)	Largest freshwater lake in India
TsoMoriri	Ladakh	Saltwater	High altitude lake
Agata lake	Karnataka	Freshwater	Located in southwest part of the city
Bellandur Lake	Karnataka	Freshwater	–
Karachi lake	Karnataka	–	Butterfly park
Ulsoor lake	Karnataka	Stale water	It has several islands
Kukarahalli lake	Karnataka	Freshwater	Recreational
Honnamana	Karnataka	Freshwater	Holy lake, place for various festivals
Pampa Sarovar	Karnataka	Freshwater	Tungabhadra river
Ashtamudi Kayal	Kerala	Brackish water	Ramsar wetland site
Kuttanad	Kerala		Backwater paddy cultivation
Vembanad	Kerala	Brackish water	Ramsar wetland; boat race
Shashtamkotta	Kerala	Freshwater	Ramsar wetland
Bhojtal	Madhya. Pradesh	Freshwater	Ramsar site; largest artificial lake in India
Salim Ali	Maharashtra	Freshwater	Birdwatching
Shivsagar	Maharashtra	Freshwater	Koyna dam
Lonar lake	Maharashtra	Crater lake	National Geo-Heritage monument
Loktak lake	Manipur	Lenticular freshwater	Ramsar wetland; Phumdis (Floating Islands); Multipurpose project
Umiam	Meghalaya	Freshwater	Famous for cycling and boating
Tam Dil	Mizoram	Freshwater	–
Chilika lake	Orissa	Brackish water	India’s largest brackish water lake; lagoon
Kanjia lake	Orissa	Freshwater	Wetland of national importance
Harike	Punjab	Freshwater	Ramsar wetland site
Rupar	Punjab	Freshwater	Manmade riverine lake
Kanjli	Punjab	Freshwater	Ramsar wetland site
Sambhar lake	Rajasthan	Saltwater	Ramsar wetland; largest inland saltwater lake in India
Rajsamand	Rajasthan	Freshwater	–
Tsomgo lake	Sikkim	Freshwater	Winter frozen
Khecheoplari	Sikkim	Freshwater	Sacred lake for Hindus and Buddhists
Ooty lake	Tamilnadu	Freshwater	Boat House
Chembarambakkam	Tamilnadu	Artificial lake	–
Kodaikanal Lake	Tamilnadu	Artificial lake	Boat club, boathouse, and boat service
Hussain Sagar	Telangana	Artificial lake	Artificial Gibraltar rock island
Badrakali lake	Telegana	Freshwater	Artificial lake
Govind Ballabh Pant Sagar	Uttar Pradesh	Man-made lake	Rihand dam
Belasagar	Uttar Pradesh	Freshwater	Irrigation lake
Bhimtal	Uttarakhand	Freshwater	Medium altitude lake
East Calcutta wetlands	West Bengal	Brackish water	Ramsar wetland

Details of some lakes

1. Kolleru Lake – Andhra Pradesh

• One of the Largest fresh water lake in India.
• Located between Krishna and Godavari delta.
• Atapaka Bird Sanctuary is a located on the Kolleru Lake.

2. Sambhar Lake – Rajasthan

• India’s largest inland salt lake.
• It is a bowl shape lake encircles historical Sambhar Lake Town located 96 km south west of the city of Jaipur (Northwest India) and 64 km north east of Ajmer along National Highway 8 in Rajasthan.
• Mahabharata mentions the Sambhar lake as part of the kingdom of the demon king Brishparva.

3. Pushkar Lake – Rajasthan

• Located in the town of Pushkar in Ajmer district of the Rajasthan.
• Pushkar Lake is a sacred lake of the Hindus. 

4. Wular Lake – Jammu Kashmir

• Largest Freshwater lake in India.
• Wular lake can spread over nearly 200-sq-kms but its actual surface area tends to vary during the year.
• The Jhelum River flows into the lake, 40-km downstream from Srinagar, and then out again.
• Lake basin was formed as a result of tectonic activity and is fed by the Jhelum River.

5. Pulicat Lake- Andhra Pradesh

• Second largest brackish – water lake or lagoon in India.
• The large spindle-shaped barrier island named Sriharikota separates the lake from the Bay of Bengal.
• The island is home to the Satish Dhawan Space Centre,the launch site of India’s successful first lunar space mission, the Chandrayaan-1.

6. Loktak Lake -Manipur

• Largest freshwater lake in North -East India.
• Keibul Lamjao the only floating national park in the world floats over it,which is the last natural refuge of the endangered sangai or Manipur brow-antlered deer. 

7. Sasthamcotta Lake – Kerala

• Largest fresh water lake in kerala.
• The purity of the lake water for drinking use is attributed to the presence of large population of larva called cavaborus that consumes bacteria in the lake water. 

8. Vembanad Lake -Kerala

• Vembanad (Vembanad Kayal or Vembanad Kol) is the longest lake in India, and the largest lake in the state of Kerala.
• It is known as Punnamada Lake in Kuttanad and Kochi Lake in Kochi.
• The Nehru Trophy Boat Race is conducted in a portion of the lake.

9. Chilka Lake -Odisha

• Chilika Lake is a brackish water lagoon, spread over the Puri, Khurda and Ganjam districts of Odisha state on the east coast of India, at the mouth of the Daya River, flowing into the Bay of Bengal, covering an area of over 1,100 km2.
• It is the largest coastal lagoon in India and the second largest lagoon in the world.
• Chilika Lake is the largest wintering ground for migratory birds, on the Indian sub-continent.

10. Dal Lake – Jammu Kashmir

• Dal Lake is a lake in Srinagar and is integral to tourism known as the “Jewel in the crown of Kashmir” or “Srinagar’s Jewel”.
• Asia’s largest Tulip garden is on the banks of Dal Lake.
• Mughal gardens, Shalimar Bagh and the Nishat Bagh are on the banks of Dal Lake. 

11. Nalsarover Lake- Gujarat

• The Nalsarovar Lake in Gujarat is probably the largest water bird sanctuary in the country.
• The Nalsarovar Lake is mainly inhabited by migratory birds in winter and spring, it is the largest wetland bird sanctuary in Gujarat, and one of the largest in India.
• It was declared a bird sanctuary in April 1969.

12. Tsomgo Lake – Sikkim

• Tsongmo Lake or Changu Lake, is a glacial lake in the East Sikkim.
• The lake is the venue for the Guru Purnima festival in which Jhakris of Sikkim assemble at the lake area to derive benefits from the healing qualities of the lake waters.

13. Bhimtal Lake – Uttarakhand

• Bhimtal Lake is a lake in the town of Bhimtal, in the Indian state of Uttarakhand, with a masonry dam built in 1883 creating the storage facility
•  It is the largest lake in Kumaon region, known as the “lake district of India”.
•  “C” shaped lake.

14. Barapani Lake- Meghalaya

• Barapani or Umiam Lake is in Shillong .
• The origin of Lake in 1965 is due to the Umiam Umtru Hydro Electric Power Project ,the first Hydel power project in the North-east region of India. 

15. Nainital Lake – Uttarakhand

• Nainital Lake, a natural freshwater body, situated amidst the township of Nainital in Uttarakhand State of India
• Kidney shaped or crescent shaped.

16. Periyar Lake -Kerala

• Periyar Lake is formed by the construction of the dam across the Mullaperiyar River in 1895.
• The notable elephant reserve and a tiger reserve, Periyar Wildlife Sanctuary is located on the banks of Periyar lake.

17. Hussain Sagar Lake – Telengana

• The lake is in Hyderabad, built by Hazrat Hussain Shah Wali in 1562, during the rule of Ibrahim Quli Qutub Shah.
• Connects the twin cities of Hyderabad and Secunderabad.
• A major attraction at the Hussain Sagar is the 16 meter high, 350 tonne monolithic Buddha statue on the ‘Rock of Gibraltar’ installed at the center of the lake. 

18. Salim Ali Lake – Maharashtra

• It has been renamed after the great ornithologist, naturalist Salim Ali and also known as birdman of India.
• Salim Ali Sarovar (lake) popularly known as Salim Ali Talab is located near Delhi Gate, opposite Himayat Bagh, Aurangabad. 

19. Kanwar Lake- Bihar

• Kanwar Lake Bird Sanctuary comprising water ponds, marshes and forests is a home for different species of wild animals, birds, plants etc.
• The Kanwar Taal or Kabar Taal Lake is Asia’s largest freshwater oxbow lake.

20. Nakki Lake – Rajasthan

• It is a very ancient sacred Lake, according to the Hindu legend. It is called by this name because it was dug out from Nails (Nakh).
• ‘Nakki Lake is situated in the Indian hill station of Mount Abu in Aravalli range.
• Mahatma Gandhi’s ashes were immersed in this Holy Lake on 12 February 1948 and Gandhi Ghat was constructed.

21. Bhojtal Lake- Madhya Pradesh

• Also known as Upper Lake lies on the western side of the capital city of Madhya Pradesh, Bhopal.
• It is a major source of drinking water for the residents of the city, serving around 40% of the residents with nearly 30 million imperial gallons (140,000 m3) of water per day.
• Bada talaab, along with the nearby Chhota Talaab, meaning small lake in Hindi, constitute Bhoj Wetland, which is now a Ramsar site.
• Largest artificial lake in Asia.

Key Facts

Fact	Name of the Lake
Deepest lake in the world	Baikal (fresh water) in Russia
Largest fresh water lake	Lake Superior, between Canada and the USA
Largest lake in the world	Caspian Sea, bounded by Iran, Russia, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan
Saltiest lake in the world	Dead Sea bounded by Israel, Jordan and West Bank
Lowest lake in the world	Dead Sea between Israel and Jordan
Largest lake in India	Sambhar lake in Rajasthan
Largest fresh-water lake in India	Kolleru lake in Andhra Pradesh
Largest coastal lagoon in India	Chilka lake in Orissa
Sriharikota island is located in	Pulicat lake in Andhra Pradesh
Country known as land of thousand lakes	Finland