Keenjhar Lake

Keenjhar Lake
ڪينجهر ڍنڍ
Location Thatta District, Sindh, Pakistan
Coordinates 24°57′N 68°03′E / 24.950°N 68.050°E / 24.950; 68.050Coordinates: 24°57′N 68°03′E / 24.950°N 68.050°E / 24.950; 68.050
Basin countries Pakistan
Max. length 24 km (15 mi)
Max. width 6 km (3.7 mi)
Surface area 13,468 ha (33,280 acres)
Water volume 0.53×10^6 acre·ft (650 hm3)
Surface elevation 15 metres (49 ft)
Designated 23 July 1976[1]

Keenjhar Lake (Urdu: ڪينجهر جھیل ‎Sindhi: ڪينجهر ڍنڍ‎) commonly called Kalri Lake (Urdu: کلری جھیل ‎,Sindhi: ڪلڙي ڍنڍ ‎) is in Thatta District, Sindh, Pakistan. It is 122 km from Karachi and 18 km from the town of Thatta. It is the second largest fresh water lake in Pakistan. It is an important source of drinking water for Thatta District and Karachi city.[2]

Keenjhar Lake has been declared a ramsar site and a wildlife sanctuary. It provides a favorable habitat of winter migratory birds like ducks, geese, flamingos, cormorants, waders, herons, egrets, ibises, terns, coots and gulls. It has been observed as a breeding area of the black-crowned night heron, the cotton pygmy goose, purple swamphen, and pheasant-tailed jacana.[3]

Keenjhar Lake is a popular tourist resort. A large number of people visit it daily from Karachi, Hyderabad and Thatta to enjoy picnic, swimming, fishing, and boating.

The Sindhi legend of Noori Jam Tamachi took place around the lake. To this day there is a shrine in the middle of the lake marking Noori's grave. Every day hundreds of devotees visit the shrine.

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Ramsar List". Ramsar.org. Archived from the original on 9 April 2013. Retrieved 13 April 2013.
  2. ↑ Restoring Keenjhar Lake, published in Dawn News, 7 May 2012
  3. ↑ Ramsar Sites in Sindh


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