Matrimandir Lake

The petition highlighted a deep concern about the serious negative environmental impact of a lake of such depth and the effect this will have on the surrounding villages and stated, “We believe that it is possible to fulfill Mother’s guidelines for the lake in an environmentally sensitive, humanely inclusive, beautiful, and timely manner.” It concludes, “By pausing the ongoing work and considering all options, we can ensure a solution that reflects the values of Auroville and the wishes of the wider community.”

The petition was supported by 461 and rejected by 2 people. On April 18th, a group of residents handed over the petition results to the Matrimandir executives.

The Matrimandir executives publicly responded to the petition the next day. They observed that the petition contained fundamental errors regarding the impact of the approved design of the lake on the environment and the water resources of the surrounding villages. The executives also objected to the “bullying and threatening atmosphere” and stated that “it feels absolutely wrong to break the amazing momentum of the on-going work on such a flawed basis”, as “lake section 2 has already reached its full length, width and depth and therefore there is no logic in stopping the work without completing the work on this section”. They stated that they are working with the lake design approved by Roger Anger, Chief Architect of Auroville appointed by The Mother, which was also followed for the test lake by the previous executive team, and that it is not their role to choose or change the design of the lake. They wrote that donors for the lake are giving their offerings on the basis that the approved design of the lake be followed, and that, if work on the lake would stop, its construction, and maybe even the Matrimandir itself, “will almost certainly be taken out of Aurovilian hands.” For these reasons the executives felt unable to halt the lake work. A few days later the Governing Board-appointed Working Committee circulated its appreciation for the response of the Matrimandir Executives. A strongly worded retort was published in the community edition of the News and Notes #1024.

Also in April, a community-initiated alternative design concept for the Matrimandir lake was circulated, proposed by a team of Indian landscape planners and architects. This concept was also made available on YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=moFaD2iJXyU).

Auroville Today interviewed Michael Bonke, Arjun and Rohan to understand what is presently going on at the Matrimandir lake and what their plans for the future are. We also interviewed Suhasini on the alternative design concept for the lake.