Anang Tal Lake

Syllabus: General Studies Paper 1

The Anang Tal lake in South Delhi, believed to have been built a thousand years ago, has been declared a monument of national importance through a gazette notification by the Ministry of Culture 

• In exercise of the powers conferred by sub-section (1) of section 4 of the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act, 1958 (24 of 1958), the central government declare the ancient site and remains to be of national importance.

Anang Tal Lake

• The lake is situated in Mehrauli, Delhi and is claimed to be created by Tomar King, Anangpal II, in 1,060 AD.
• He is known to have established and populated Delhi in the 11th century.
• The millennium old Anang Tal signifies the beginning of Delhi.
• Anang Tal has a strong Rajasthan connection as Maharaja Anangpal is known as nana (maternal grandfather) of Prithviraj Chauhan.

Who was Anangpal II?

• Anangpal II, popularly known as Anangpal Tomar, belonged to the Tomar dynasty.
• He was the founder of Dhillika Puri, which eventually became Delhi.
• Multiple inscriptions and coins suggest Anangpal Tomar was the ruler of present-day Delhi and Haryana in between the 8th-12th centuries.
• He had built the city from ruins and under his supervision, Anang Tal Baoli and Lal Kot were constructed.
• Anangpal Tomar II was succeeded by his grandson Prithviraj Chauhan.
• Delhi Sultanate was established in 1192 after Prithviraj Chauhan’s defeat in the Battle of Tarain (present-day Haryana) by the Ghurid forces.