Chetput Lake

Chetpet lake is a lake spread over 15 acres in Chetput, Chennai, India. It is located to the north of Chetpet railway station. It is the only existing lake at the centre of the city. The lake belongs to the Department of Fisheries of the Tamil Nadu government.Of the total area of the lake, the waterbody is spread across nearly 9 acres. An anglers club was functioning till the 1940s in the lake, whose members visited the small island in the midst of the waterbody for fishing.Although not used for drinking purposes, the lake was a source of groundwater recharge for the surrounding areas. As the water quality is not saline, the lake has a few varieties of fishes such as rohu, catla and mrigal. Breeding is monitored to assess the water quality.The lake todayIn recent years, the lake has been heavily encroached upon, particularly near the Chetpet railway station. There have been many plans to rejuvenate Chetpet lake since the mid-1990s, including developing a boat club, an aquarium, seafood stall and fish court besides a walkway around the waterbody. The last attempt to save the lake was in 2005, when the state environment department identified it along with 12 other lakes of Greater Chennai area for an eco-restoration project. The CPR Environmental Education Centre conducted a detailed survey, and based on that, the state government appointed the Tamil Nadu Urban Infrastructure Finance Services Limited to prepare a project report. The State government had sanctioned 4 million to clean the overgrown water hyacinth and desilt the lake in 2007-2008.