Holy pond could soon go dry
KATASRAJ: Twelve years after the Pakistan government launched an ambitious plan to renovate the historic Katas Raj temple complex, the shrine’s sacred pond is at risk of running dry because of excessive groundwater use by nearby factories.
A series of pipes carrying water from a nearby source have helped fill up the Amrit Kund or main pond at the temple complex located in the Kallar Kahar range of the Potohar plateau, some three hours south of Islamabad. But experts say this is a temporary solution to a larger problem.
Three cement factories located in the vicinity of the complex have reduced the groundwater level to a point where it is almost impossible for most residents in the area to find water even after digging deep wells. The well at one side of the Katas Raj complex has run dry and, in the summer of 2017, the sacred pond itself was on the brink of running dry.
Senior BJP leader LK Advani had inaugurated renovation works at the temple complex — believed to be more than 2,300 years old — during a visit to Pakistan in June 2005. Despite the allocation of several crores of Pakistani rupees by successive governments, the work was never completed.
It was only after Pakistan’s Supreme Court intervened over the poor upkeep of the temple complex last year that the Punjab government tried to fix the problem by laying pipes to bring water from a source to the pond.
But even this source could run dry in summer, residents said.
Vikas, the temple’s pujari, said the number of Hindus visiting the complex over the years has increased: “The number of those coming from India has gone down but those from other parts of Pakistan, particularly Sindh province, has gone up.”
Politician Bhagwandas Chawla from Sindh regularly sponsors visits but these last only a few days. “Much more needs to be done,” Vikas said.