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The Municipal Corporation Gurugram (MCG) has partnered with The Art of Living Social Projects to restore and sustainably manage selected urban ponds across Gurugram. The collaboration aims to address the growing degradation of the city's water bodies caused by rapid urbanisation, encroachments, sewage inflow, and waste dumping. The project will focus on scientific restoration, ecological conservation, groundwater recharge, biodiversity enhancement, and long-term monitoring. Alongside technical interventions, the initiative also seeks to involve local communities through awareness programmes and volunteer participation to ensure sustainable management of the restored water bodies.
The Municipal Corporation Gurugram (MCG) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with The Art of Living Social Projects in the past week to undertake the rejuvenation and sustainable management of selected urban ponds across Gurugram, Haryana. The partnership aims to restore degraded water bodies through scientific methods while strengthening groundwater recharge, biodiversity, and long-term water security.
Rapid urbanisation has put considerable pressure on Gurugram's lakes and ponds over the years. Encroachments, unplanned development, sewage discharge, solid waste dumping, the disappearance of feeder channels, and shrinking catchment areas have led to the deterioration of many urban water bodies. As a result, several ponds have experienced heavy siltation, declining water quality, reduced storage capacity, and weakened groundwater recharge, affecting local biodiversity, ecological balance, and the city's overall water resilience.
To address these challenges, MCG has partnered with The Art of Living Social Projects, the social service arm of The Art of Living, which has worked on water conservation, watershed management, lake and pond restoration, and ecological projects in different parts of the country. The organisation will provide technical expertise and implementation support for the restoration of identified ponds in Gurugram.
The restoration work will begin with detailed technical studies, including baseline surveys, assessments of existing pond conditions, and catchment mapping. These studies will help prepare restoration plans suited to the specific requirements of each water body.
The project will include desiltation, removal of accumulated waste, strengthening of pond embankments, restoration of water-holding capacity, and improvements to inlet and outlet systems. Nature-based solutions will also be introduced to improve water quality, support native aquatic species, increase green cover through plantation of indigenous trees, and strengthen the surrounding ecosystem.
Community participation will form a key part of the initiative. The programme includes awareness campaigns, stakeholder consultations, volunteer engagement, capacity-building activities, and better waste management practices to encourage residents to take ownership of the restored ponds and help maintain cleaner public spaces.
The partnership also provides for regular water quality monitoring and periodic evaluation of restoration outcomes to ensure that the improvements are sustained over the long term. The monitoring framework is expected to support scientific management of Gurugram's urban ponds even after restoration work is completed.
Urban water body restoration has increasingly become a priority across several Indian cities as local governments seek to improve water availability, reduce flooding risks, enhance groundwater recharge, and strengthen climate resilience. In Gurugram, where rapid urban expansion has placed increasing pressure on natural resources, restoring ponds is also expected to improve local ecosystems and support sustainable urban development.
The Art of Living Social Projects, the social service arm of The Art of Living founded by Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar in 1981, has undertaken several water conservation initiatives across India, including river rejuvenation, watershed development, and ecosystem restoration projects aimed at addressing water scarcity
Source PTI
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