Husain Sagar Lake

Ibrahim Quli Qutb Shah ordered his minister Husain Shah Wali to dam a valley between the rocky hills, creating the vast tank that has divided and defined the twin cities for 460 years. At six kilometres across at its widest, the lake shaped every subsequent development of Hyderabad and Secunderabad. The Rock of Gibraltar, an island in its centre, carries a monumental Buddha statue installed in 1992, which tipped and fell into the lake during installation before being retrieved. Severe urban runoff has degraded water quality; restoration efforts are ongoing.