When it is brimming with water in the monsoon, Tadag Tal is even more beautiful than the Naini Lake of Nainital. In winters, when its water dries up, the area transforms into a stunning landscape of mountains and valleys that makes passersby stop and admire it,” say B S Bisht of Naugam Baidiya village in Almora district, Uttarakhand.
Spanning more than 50 hectares, some 40 km from Uttarakhand’s summer capital of Gairsain town in Chamoli district, Tadag Tal in Almora is one of Uttarakhand's 192 wetlands included in Wetland Atlas 2021 prepared by Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO).
Wetlands not only provide habitat to a large number of species but also help ensure water availability, act as carbon sinks and regulate the local climate. ISRO has identified more than 231,195 wetlands across the country through satellite imagery. Following a directive from the Supreme Court in 2017, all states are required to verify and demarcate the wetlands on the ground and submit their report to the apex court. This process aims to determine whether the wetlands identified through satellite actually exist as wetlands. In line with this directive, Uttarakhand has completed ground verification of 155 wetlands.
According to an August 2025 letter from the Uttarakhand State Wetland Authority, accessed by Down To Earth (DTE), the local administration initially accepted Tadag Tal as a wetland and gave instructions to complete its boundary demarcation. But later, the government changed its opinion and now does not want Tadag Tal to be identified as wetland. Experts, however, are of the view that Tadag Tal is a wetland and should not be disturbed.
The Wetlands (Conservation and Management) Rules, 2017, define a wetland as “an area of marsh, fen, peatland or water; whether natural or artificial, permanent or temporary, with water that is static or flowing, fresh, brackish or salt, including areas of marine water the depth of which at low tide does not exceed six meters, but does not include river channels, paddy fields, human-made water bodies/tanks specifically constructed for drinking water purposes and structures specifically constructed for aquaculture, salt production, recreation and irrigation purposes”.
Official documents accessed by DTE say that during its field verification drive in December 2025, the Almora administration found that Tadag Tal primarily functions as a seasonal water accumulation zone, in which 54.2 hectare is affected by waterlogging. During the monsoon, rainfall and natural drainage cause water to collect, but the water recedes after the monsoon ends. Local communities have traditionally cultivated these lands once the water subsides, particularly for wheat.
TADAG TAL IS DEVOID OF A SOLID BEDROCK UNDER IT. THEREFORE, RAINWATER SEEPS AND DRAINS OUT IN TWO-THREE DAYS, SAYS A PRELIMINARY STUDY ON THE FEASIBILITY OF TURNING THE LAKE PERENNIAL
Since Tadag Tal primarily functions as a seasonally waterlogged agricultural area and does not exhibit the ecological characteristics required for wetland notification, it falls under the categories excluded from being called wetlands, says Vartika Negi, a scientist with the Directorate of Environment Protection and Climate Change. Deepak Singh, divisional forest officer and secretary to the district-level technical committee for wetland verification in Almora, echoes the same view. “The district-level committee found that Tadag Tal does not fit the definition of a wetland. It holds water only for a few months. Most of it is privately owned where paddy cultivation takes place,” says Singh. As per the 2017 rules, paddy fields cannot be categorised as wetland.
Most residents of nearby villages also do not want the area to be designated as wetland. But they contradict Singh's comment about paddy cultivation. “About one-third of Tadag Tal is measured agricultural land, where farming is carried out, but no paddy is grown here. Around 50 per cent of the area is marshy wetland, which receives water throughout the year from two local streams, Maligaad and Misariya. Approximately 25 per cent of the area remains barren,” says Ranjeet Singh Mehra, former village head of Dhanan, who wants Tadag Tal to be developed into a perennial lake.
For the past decade, people living around Tadag Tal have demanded that the lake be developed into a permanent artifi-cial lake. “A large portion of this area is registered under the names of farmers from nine gram sabhas for various land uses. The village residents who farm here demand that they be given proper compensation, in return for which they are willing to give up their land.
The area produces about 350 tonnes of wheat, 3 tonnes of mustard, 4 tonnes of millet, along with pulses and other crops. Around 15,000 people depend on this produce for their livelihood," says Bisht, who is pres-ident of Tadag Tal Improvement Committee, constituted by local residents to demand transformation of the lake. Panchayats of nearby villages, such as Naugaon Badiya, Dhanan, Golkhal, Nyauni, Sodiyapani and Ringonia, all located about 1 km from Tadag Tal, have written to the government expressing their support for an artificial lake, says Jaswant, village head of Naugaon Badiya. "Once the lake is there, it will not only bring de-velopment to the region but also strengthen the local economy through tourism," he adds.
TADAG TAL TURNS INTO A WET, MARSH-LIKE AREA DURING THE MONSOON, WITH A CONTINUOUS FLOW OF WATER. SUCH WETLANDS ARE IMPORTANT TO CONSERVE BECAUSE THEIR ECOLOGICAL VALUE IS EXTREMELY HIGH WHEN THEY ARE IN A MARSHY STATE
In response to the people's demands, the district administration asked the Wadia Institute of Himalayan Geology, an autonomous research institute based in Dehradun, to assess the feasibility of turning the lake permanent. In its preliminary report re-leased in February 2026, the institute indicated that the chances of developing a lake here are very low. “The institute, in its preliminary findings, has reported that solid bedrock (hard rocks) is not present beneath the tal. As a result, rainwater seeps through and drains out within two to three days,” Javed Anwar, superintending engineer in the irrigation department of Almora, tells DTE. He adds that the institute will conduct further surveys before submitting its final report, and only after that will it be possible to say anything definitively about the feasibility of constructing a lake.
Unlike the district administration or local residents, E Theophilus, an environmentalist who has worked on Himalayan ecology and has been associated with mapping high-altitude lakes with the Uttarakhand Space Application Centre, considers Tadag Tal to be a wetland. “Tadag Tal is essentially a marshy area that turns into a wet, marsh-like condition during the monsoon, with a continuous flow of water. Such wetlands are important to conserve because their ecological value is extremely high when they are in a marshy state. This area absorbs water and gradually releases it—acting like a sponge. Because of this, the biodiversity here is also highly unique and rich. In the process of wetland conservation, it is important to protect such areas, even if they do not resemble conventional lakes or ponds," says Theophilus.
Tadag Tal lies in the Ramganga valley—a geologically active region, where ground movements frequently lead to cracks, subsidence and landslides. Geologists believe the lake was likely formed due to a major landslide that blocked the flow of Tadag stream, which over time accumulated and took the shape of a lake. Geologist J S Rawat, advisor to the Uttarakhand State Council for Science and Technology, says that Tadag Tal can be re-stored to its centuries-old condition through natural methods. “The 11 perennial streams emerging from the Dharpani Dhar Spring Sanctuary in Almora have, over the past six decades, turned into ephemeral rivers. In other words, they are no longer even seasonal rivers and carry water only for a few days or hours during the rainy season. Three streams originat-ing from this watershed—Chhatariya Gevad, Kalyani Gad and Totapagar—used to feed Tadag Tal, which once held water throughout the year. However, due to climate change, changing rainfall patterns and deforestation, groundwater levels in this spring sanctuary have continuously declined. As a result, the streams have dried up, and subsequently, Tadag Tal has also dried.”
Rawat says that Tadag Tal can be naturally revived if the water from these three streams is restored. For this, sus-tained efforts will be required to promote rainwater harvesting in the recharge zones of the Dharpani Dhar Spring Sanctu-ary. “This is the only way to save Tadag Tal,” he says. “Even if some seepage continues, there will still be enough water retained to preserve the existence of the tal.”
This article was originally published in the April 16-30, 2026 print edition of Down To Earth