Dal Lake, known as the “jewel in the crown of Kashmir,” is a stunning 1,583-meter-high lake (about a mile high) that borders Jammu and Kashmir’s largest city, Srinagar. Surprisingly for a body of water at this altitude, it has numerous wetlands and is deep and stable enough to be navigable year-round. As such, it has become famous for its floating gardens, floating post office and even floating mansions.
The houseboats of Dal Lake came about because the maharaja of Kashmir, then a British princely state, restricted the building of houses in the area by foreigners. British aristocrats responded by building hybrid English-Indian-style mansions on the lake instead, crafted from local cedar wood. Each one is equipped with a shikara, a smaller wooden boat that ferries passengers to and from the store.
These boats were maintained after independence by the local Hanji caste of water-dwellers, who also inhabit Kashmir’s other lakes. Their livelihoods are dependent on the lake, doing activities such as fishing and carrying cargo. However, they faced issues of being marginalized, and many younger members do not wish to carry on the family trades.
Today, many of the over 900 houseboats are hotels catering to tourists. These “floating pieces of England” have high-end rooms for guests, and patios for relaxing and serving drinks. However, many boats are now endangered due to a shortage of craftsmen capable of repairing them. In addition, pollution continues to be a major issue for the lake and tourism.
