Sasaram: Efforts to clean and repair the inlet and outlet water channels of the artificial lake that surrounds Sher Shah Suri's famous mausoleum in Sasaram in Rohtas district, around 160km southwest from Patna, have been stalled following resistance from residents for whom the channels served as a drainage system.

However, the stakeholders in the project to restore the water channels expect to meet the deadline of January 2019 so that the monument, which is protected by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) and has off and on been on the tentative list of monuments contending for Unesco World Heritage status, can regain its magnificence.

The local population has been resisting the project because drains from their homes empty in the channels and if it is stopped, there will be no place for sewage water to go.

Recently a team of ASI officials, including its regional director for eastern region Nandini Bhattacharya Sahu and Patna circle superintending archaeologist D.N. Sinha, met Rohtas district magistrate Pankaj Dixit to discuss the project, which they consider key to the development and protection of the 16th century mausoleum.

"We have spruced up everything within the tomb premises and even renovated around a 50-metre-long portion of inlet water channel that comes under our jurisdiction. However, the state government and its agencies have to renovate the portion of water channels outside the premises and our talks with Rohtas district officials were regarding it," Sinha said.

As per the original plan of the octagonal tomb built for Sher Shah in AD 1545, the inlet water channel is around 1.8km long and brings water from the "Sone river high level canal" to the artificial lake while an around 2.1-km-long outlet channel releases it back.

However, over the years these became dilapidated, encroached and what was worse, the residents in the area connected their house drainage to the two channels.

This led to sewerage water falling in the artificial lake and polluting it with solid and liquid waste.

The ASI has been struggling over the years to keep it clean, but it's an uphill task without restoration of channels and stopping local drains emptying into it.

Asked about the issue, Rohtas district magistrate Dixit said: "Work is going on. There are three stakeholders in it - the water resources department, ASI and the municipal council. Our priority is to restore the inlet channel to carry clean water to the mausoleum tank."

"Parallel work on providing a separate drainage system for the residents is also going on because we cannot stop the drainage of local people. At present, temporary drainage arrangements are being made, but later on a permanent one will be constructed by Bihar Urban Infrastructure Development Corporation (Buidco)," Dixit added.

However, water resources department executive engineer (Sone high level canal division) Mithilesh Kumar Dinakar said that "public is obstructing the restoration work of the water channels because it will stop waste water from their homes falling into it".

Mithilesh added that to overcome the problem from recurring, the district magistrate has proposed that the inlet channel be built on or above the road level. On the other hand, the municipal council is planning to construct a separate drain for the area.

"The contractors have been given January 2019 as the deadline and we expect them to finish the work. Also, plans are being considered to extend the outlet channel by up to three or four kilometres," the executive engineer said.

Sasaram municipal council executive officer Kumari Himani said: "We are keeping a watch on all the issues and supervising everything. We are pushing the agencies doing the work to complete it on time. Temporary drainage facilities are being provided for homes."