Residents of Chamoli's Nizamula village recover boat buried in natural calamity in 1970

Residents of Nizamula village found a boat that was buried in flashfloods in 1970 after digging five feet in the Durmi Lake which used to be a tourist spot earlier.

Local residents claim the boat belongs to the British era. The villagers here want to revive the Durmi lake located in Nizamula Valley as part of efforts to brings it on the world tourism map. Uttarakhand has a rich historical heritage.

"On 15 August, the locals tried to revive the lake. Currently, the condition of the lake is not good. If its geological survey is conducted and the lake is geologically stable, then this area can be linked with tourism and generate employment in future," said Mohan Singh, the village head, Ir.

He said that during British rule, the natural lake (taal) of the Durmi was unmatched for its beauty.

"The British used to do boating at this place. After British rule, the village, the lake and tourism here were neglected. Meanwhile, this lake was also completely damaged in the 1970 natural disaster," said Singh.

"A boat belonging to the British era was buried in the debris. It has now been found by the villagers here," he added.

Gajendra Singh Rawat, a resident of the area said he has heard from his ancestors that Durmi lake was about 5 kilometres long in which lots of boats used to sail.

"Thousands of tourists used to come here for boating. There was a boathouse, where lots of boats were parked. They all drowned in the 1970 flash floods. Crowds of people from nearby villages are gathering to see the boat which has been excavated. After tourism was hit by the COVID-19 period, local villagers have come forward to renovate the Durmi lake," he said.

( With inputs from ANI )