Reclaiming the Chola Legacy: How a Veteran Restored Bengaluru’s Ancient Water Arteries
Retired Army Captain Santosh Kumar utilized 1923 British-era maps to identify and clear encroached ancient drainage channels. His efforts successfully reconnected 14 dry lakes, mitigating local flooding by restoring a thousand-year-old hydraulic network.
The Anatomy of Urban Flooding
Bengaluru faces a striking paradox every monsoon: residential streets transform into rivers while historic lake beds remain parched. This systemic failure stems from the degradation of the Raja Kaluves, an ancient network of canals designed to transport overflow between water bodies. For centuries, these channels followed the city’s natural topography to prevent stagnation and recharge groundwater. However, decades of unchecked expansion buried these veins under concrete, forcing rainwater into homes rather than heritage reservoirs.
Mapping a Forgotten Network
Captain Santosh Kumar, who retired from the Indian Army in 2008, began investigating the decline of water bodies near Muthanallur in Anekal Taluk. While he initially uncovered illegal commercial water extraction via tankers, the primary culprit was structural connectivity. To identify where the system had broken, Kumar sourced British-era maps dating back to 1923.
By overlaying these historical documents with the modern geographic footprint, Kumar physically traced the original paths of the Raja Kaluves. His investigation revealed that the pathways were often unrecognizable, having been obstructed by construction or intentional encroachment. Between 2017 and 2019, he documented the specific points where the cascading lake system—a design credited to city founder Kempe Gowda and expanded during the Chola dynasty—had been severed.
Restoring the Flow
Focusing on the link between Muthanallur and Bidaraguppe lakes, Kumar identified four critical Raja Kaluves that had vanished from public record. Working with neighborhood residents and securing mandates from the Minor Irrigation Department and the Deputy Commissioner of Bengaluru Urban, he spearheaded the excavation of a four-kilometer stretch. This project reconnected the chain to Battalakere Lake, restoring the natural hydraulic sequence.
- Historical Scope: The restoration successfully revived 14 lakes, some dating back nearly 1,000 years to the reign of Rajaraja Chola I.
- Resilience Performance: During subsequent heavy rains, areas surrounding the restored channels avoided the floods that plagued neighboring districts.
- Infrastructure Scale: Bengaluru contains approximately 800 kilometers of stormwater drains, many of which remain compromised by urbanization.
The success of the Anekal Taluk project demonstrates that the solution to Bengaluru's water crisis lies in historical preservation as much as modern engineering. By respecting the natural valleys and historical waterways, the city can convert a destructive flood risk back into a sustainable water resource.
Source: The Better India
