| Sambhar Lake | |
|---|---|
 Aerial view of Sambhar Lake in Rajasthan | |
  Sambhar Lake  Sambhar Lake | |
| Location | Sambhar Lake Town,Jaipur district,Rajasthan,India |
| Coordinates | 26°56′30″N75°04′35″E / 26.94167°N 75.07639°E /26.94167; 75.07639 |
| Type | Salt lake |
| Primary outflows | Luni River |
| Catchment area | 5,700 km2 (2,200 sq mi) |
| Basin countries |  India |
| Designation | Ramsar Site |
| Max. length | 35.5 km (22.1 mi) |
| Max. width | 3 to 11 km (1.9 to 6.8 mi) |
| Surface area | 190 to 2,300 km2 (73 to 888 sq mi) |
| Average depth | 0.6 to 3 m (2.0 to 9.8 ft) |
| Max. depth | 3 m (9.8 ft) |
| Surface elevation | 360 m (1,180 ft) |
| Designated | 23 March 1990 |
| Reference no. | 464[1] |
| Location | |
 Interactive map of Sambhar Lake | |
TheSambhar Salt Lake is India's largest inlandsalt lake. It is located inSambhar Lake Town,Jaipur district ofRajasthan,India, 80 km (50 mi) southwest of the city ofJaipur and 64 km (40 mi) northeast ofAjmer, Rajasthan. It surrounds the historical Sambhar Lake Town.
The Sambhar Lake is named after the goddessShakambhari, who is a form ofDurga, and who was the tutelary goddess of the Chauhan Rajputs.[2]
The Sambhar Lake is India's largest inlandsalt lake. It is located 60 km (37 mi) southwest ofJaipur, Rajasthan.[3] The lake is aplaya, or a seasonal lake with a flat bottom.[4] It is also the largest playa in theThar Desert.[5]
The Sambhar Lake is primarily fed by four ephemeral streams: Rupangarh, Mendha, Kharian and Khandel.[5] During times of heavy rainfall, surface runoff along with three major streams, Ruprali, Bandi and Turatmati, additionally feed the lake. These streams vary in salt content which results in differing salinity levels in the lake.[5] The lake's hypersalinity is three to four times that of sea water.[5]
The lake has a catchment area of 5700 square km.[6] The lake is an extensivesalinewetland, with water depth fluctuating from as few as 60 centimetres (24 in) during the dry season to about 3 meters (10 ft) at the end of themonsoon season. It occupies an area of 190 to 230 square kilometers based on the season. The lake is elliptically shaped with a length of approximately 35.5 km and a breadth varying between 3 km and 11 km. The lake straddlesNagaur and Jaipur districts and borders on the Ajmer district. The circumference of the lake is 96 km, and it is surrounded by theAravali hills on all sides.
The Sambhar lake basin is divided by a 5.1 km longdam made ofsandstone. After the saltwater reaches a certain concentration, it is released from the west side to the east side by lifting dam gates. To the east of the dam are saltevaporation ponds where salt has been farmed for a thousand years. This eastern area is 80 square km and comprises salt reservoirs, canals and salt pans separated by narrow ridges. To the east of the dam is arailroad, built by theBritish (before India's independence) to provide access fromSambhar Lake City to the salt works.
The temperature reaches 45 °C (113 °F) in summer and goes as low as 5 °C (41 °F) in winter.
In 1884, ancient sculpture art was discovered in the area as part of small-scale excavation work done in Sambhar Lake. During that excavation, someterracotta structures, coins, and seals were found along with a claystupa. Sambhar sculpture art appears to be influenced by Buddhism. Later on, around 1934, a large-scale systematic and scientific excavation was conducted in which a large number of terracotta figurines, stoneware, and decorated discs were found. A number of these sculptures from Sambhar are present at theAlbert Hall Museum.
The lake's salt production was managed by theMughal dynasty, after which its ownership was shared between the princely states of Jaipur and Jodhpur.[7]
The Indian epicMahabharata and the 18th and 19th chapters of the Bhagavata Purana mention Sambhar town as the capital of the demon kingVrishparva.[3] Sambhar town is also the place where Vrishparva's priest,Shukracharya, lived and where his daughter,Devayani married the emperorYayati.[3] A temple near the lake is dedicated to Devayani.
The goddessShakambhari, who is a form ofDurga, is believed to have created Sambhar Lake.[2] Shakambhari was the tutelary goddess of Chauhan (Prithviraj Chauhan).[3] According to one legend, she was pleased by their devotion when milk was offered to a holy ascetic and, as a result, turned the forest into a plain of silver.[3] In another version of the legend, it is mentioned that the divine presence of the goddess herself turned the forest into a plain of precious jewels.[2] The townspeople feared the jewels would cause conflict, so Shakambhari transformed them into a salt lake.[2] The name of the lake, Sambhar, stems from a variationShakambhari, which happened around the sixth century.[8]
The Sambhar Salt Lake is the source of most of Rajasthan's salt production. It produces 196,000 tonnes of clean salt every year, which is around 0.66% of India's salt production.[9] Salt is produced by evaporation ofbrine and is mostly managed by the government-owned company Sambhar Salts Ltd. (SSL), a joint venture of the Hindustan Salts Limited and the state government.[10] SSL owns 3% of the eastern lake.
The company is struggling to produce sufficient amount of salt but the private players are producing more than 10 times that of the company due to production from thousands of illegal borewells, which are also severely harming the ecology of the salt lake.[11]
There are 38 clusters of villages surrounding the lake. Major settlements include Sambhar, Gudha, Jabdinagar, Nawa, Jhak, Korsina, Jhapok, Kanseda, Kuni, Tyoda, Govindi, Nandha, Sinodiya, Arwik ki dhani, Khanadja, Khakharki, Kerwa ki dhani, Rajas, Jalwali ki dhani.
In 2014, six PSUs includingBharat Heavy Electricals Limited and Power Grid Corporation of India Ltd had planned to set up the world's largest 4,000 MW Ultra-mega Solar power project in the land under the company.[12] But after BJP government came to power in the state, the project was scrapped, citing environmental issues and shifted toGujarat.[13]
In 2019, the Rajasthan government started an asset-liability assessment to take over loss-making Sambhar Salts Ltd. from Hindustan Salts Ltd.[14]
Sambhar Salt Lake was designated as aRamsar site in 1990.[15] The wetland is an important wintering habitat and feeding ground for migratory birds which include tens of thousands of pinkflamingos.[16] Two species of flamingoes visit the lake, theGreater Flamingo and theLesser Flamingo and their presence is dependent upon water levels and the availability of algae.[3] Because of the lake's high salinity, flora and fauna mainly thrive during the rainy season when salinity levels decrease.[3]
The specializedalgae andbacteria growing in the lake provide striking water colours and support thelake ecology that, in turn, sustains the migratingwaterfowl. There is other wildlife in the nearby forests, whereNilgai move freely along with deer and foxes.
In 2019, more than 15,000 migratory birds died at the Lake due toavian botulism.[17]
For the filmDelhi-6 directed byRakeysh Omprakash Mehra, production designerSamir Chanda recreated inner lanes ofOld Delhi at Sambhar. Later for certain scenes, historicJama Masjid was digitally added to the frame as a backdrop. Certain scenes of many other popular films have been shot around the lake and the main Sambhar Lake Town such as:
Songs shot:
On the 68thRepublic Day of India,Nissan GT-R set aworld record inLimca Book of Records by making the largest outline of the map of India. It recreated the approximate outline of Indian map spanning 3 km in length and 2.8 km in width with a total outline periphery of 14.7 km at Sambhar Lake.[18]
Sambhar Lake, a critical migratory bird habitat, faced major avian mortality events in 2019 (18,000–23,000 birds) and 2024 (over 600 birds) due to avian botulism, triggered by environmental factors like excess rainfall, reduced salinity, and high temperatures, which foster Clostridium botulinum toxin production. Illegal human activities—including widespread salt mining, unauthorized borewells, and salt-pan encroachments—have degraded the lake’s hydrology, lowered groundwater by up to 60 meters, and reduced wetland area by 4.23% per decade. These pressures have led to biodiversity loss, with migratory bird species dropping from 30 to 21 (2021–2022) and declining flamingo nesting.Regulatory responses include National Green Tribunal orders (2016) to cancel illegal salt pans, a 2013 PIL by Naresh Kadyan targeting borewell mafia, and a salt-supply ban post-2019. Conservation recommendations emphasize habitat monitoring, carcass removal, stricter extraction controls, community engagement, and wetland restoration to safeguard Sambhar’s ecosystem and its role as a key wintering ground for migratory waterfowl. Sustained multi-agency action is critical.
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