India, Jan. 25 -- The Sukhna lake is the crown jewel of Le Corbusier's ecological legacy, a counterpart to his heritage of architectural marvels. By damming the Sukhna choe (completed 1958), a perennial source of water was created. It resulted in a concentration of biodiversity around and in the waterbody that graces the north-eastern face of the City Beautiful.

While ambling along the Sukhna promenade, the keen eye spots birds, fishes and the occasional snake. A solitary checkered keelback or Asiatic water snake (non-venomous) is sometimes observed basking on the embankment running down to the water.

Last week, an extraordinarily alert eye caught a spectacle of the natural world. Entwined keelbacks were indulging in group basking just ...