An emperor’s dream come to life, a 13th-century reservoir hopes to restore lost glory

Once spread over 100 hectares, this water body has shrunk into a patch of filthy water over the years. However, in recent years, some efforts have been made to restore and conserve it with the ASI taking up the task of repairing and maintaining the monuments near the tank. On Friday, the ministry of Jal Shakti organised a ‘Jal Itihas Utsav’ here to raise public consciousness about safeguarding water heritage sites.

According to a PIB statement, dated November 30, “The restoration work of the Shamsi Talab … .adequately reflects convergence of various Departments of Central and State government.”

Elaborating on the Iltutmish connect, author Rana Safvi, in her book Where Stones Speak: Historical Trails in Mehrauli, the First City of Delhi, wrote: “According to legend, Sultan Iltutmish wanted to build a tank for his people…One night it was the Prophet Mohammad, who came in his dreams on his horse and instructed him to dig for water and build a water reservoir in the place marked by the hoof of his winged horse, named Buraq. The sultan…went to look for the place and found the mark of the hoof with water flowing from it and built the reservoir around it.”

Safvi further wrote: “Sultan Firoz (Shah) Tughlaq got it repaired and it was refilled with water…Even today there is water in it—although extremely dirty—and weeds choke the tank…”

The reservoir also finds mentions in the works of famed traveller Ibn Batuta who had described the Hauz-i-Shamsi as a rectangular-shaped reservoir that was spread across an area of one mile by two miles.

Speaking to The Indian Express on the current state of the reservoir, writer Sohail Hashmi said, “In the middle of a depression in the Shamsi Talab was a rock…Today, this rock is not in the middle of the lake anymore but stands at the corner.

This suggests that more than 50% of the lake had been encroached upon…”

Author Swapna Liddle, in her book 14 Historic Walks of Delhi, wrote: “The reservoir was an ambitious enterprise, occupying a large area and fed by underground springs as well as streams. The pavilion you see across the tank from the Jahaz Mahal once stood in the middle of the water… The tank had a tendency of silting up and required repeated excavation—first by Alauddin Khalji and then by Firoz Shah Tughlaq.”