Anchar Lake


Anchar Lake is a lake in highly deteriorated condition located near Soura area in the city of Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir, India. Situated close to Ganderbal, The lake is connected with the famous Dal Lake via a channel "Amir Khan Nallah", just as the Dal-gate connects Dal to the Nigeen Lake. In case of flooding, the excessive water of Dal is diverted here.

Deterioration

Once a popular tourist destination as tourists on shikaras and houseboats used to travel here from Dal Lake, over the years it has deteriorated owing to pollution, large scale encroachment, and illegal constructions in its surroundings. In the 1990s, when the Nallah Mar was covered to build the Mearplan highway around western side of Dal, six-foot pipes were laid under the new road, to allow Dal to continue to drain into the Anchar lake system, however the pipes soon clogged due to waste and debris.
Like the Dal lake and Wular Lake, it is home to the Hanji community which live near the lake in an area called as Anchar among the locals.