Alamatti Dam passes crucial test

By Suresh Bhat

BIJAPUR, NOV. 28. Every cloud has a silver lining. It was this popular saying that raised the hopes of the people in drought- prone North Karnataka all these years that their region would make progress some day. Leave alone the people in the erstwhile Mysore State, parents of daughters from better developed areas such as Hubli-Dharwad and Belgaum used to hesitate to betroth their daughter to any bridegroom from this drought-hit region.

This fear may soon become a thing of past as the Upper Krishna Project (UKP) has reached a decisive stage after the successful completion of the much-discussed Alamatti Dam. Due to the inordinate delay in its completion thanks to controversies, the Alamatti Dam, a multi-purpose component, had become a bottleneck in the smooth execution of the UKP. The State has now overcome this major hurdle.

The good news is that the newly-constructed dam has passed all the crucial tests. Since last September, water is being stored up to a level of 515 metres, as against the full reservoir level of 519.6 metres, on an experimental basis. According to sources in the Krishna Bhagya Jala Nigam Limited (KBJNL), the nodal agency for the execution of the UKP, all the dam components such as radial crest gates, hydraulic lift systems and sluice gates are working satisfactorily. No weak points have been detected in the cement concrete structures. Likewise, no leakage in the crest portion or seepage in the earthen portion of the dam has been noticed.

World Bank's concern: The proven sustainability of the earthen portion of the dam assumes importance considering that the World Bank was initially reluctant to fund the UKP as it was against using black cotton soil in the dam's construction. The bank raised serious objection to use of the soil in the earthen embankment of the Narayanapur Dam. It was evident from records that the bank's technical team comprising reclamation experts had expressed grave concern over the safety of the dam. The team, at its meeting with the UKP officials on July 3, 1977, had strongly maintained that black cotton soil was an undesirable material for dam construction. The UKP technical team had sought to convince the World Bank that use of black cotton soil was not detrimental to the safety of the dam. However, compared to the Narayanapur Dam, the earthen embankment in the Alamatti Dam was smaller, and the use of black cotton soil was negligible. The sustainability of the dam components has now undoubtedly vindicated Karnataka's stand.

The 1,392-km-long Krishna river has a catchment area of 2.6 lakh square km., and is the second largest river in peninsular India. Originating near Mahabaleshwar in the Western Ghats, it traverses a distance of 303 km. in Maharashtra. Its 480-km. stretch in Karnataka passes through Belgaum, Bijapur, Bagalkot, Gulbarga and Raichur districts. It flows a distance of 609 km. in Andhra Pradesh before joining the Bay of Bengal.

Out of the 2.6-lakh sq. km. catchment area of the Krishna Basin, the areas in Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh constitute 26.8 per cent and 29.4 per cent, respectively, and Karnataka alone covers 43.8 per cent (1,12,600 sq. km.) of the catchment area. It is noteworthy that out of Karnataka's total area of 1,92,000 sq.km., the basin (catchment area) of the Krishna river constitutes 1,12,600 sq. km. (58.9 per cent). This underlines the importance of the Krishna Basin projects including the UKP, without which Karnataka cannot make comprehensive progress.

Project revised: The Alamatti Dam was not in original plan of the UKP as only 100 tmc.ft. of water was available as per the Khosla Committee's (it was then called "committee" not "tribunal") allocation. However, as per the decision of the then government headed by the late S. Nijalingappa, the project was revised in 1960. Subsequently, the Alamatti Dam was included in the UKP. Forwarding a revised estimate of Rs. 85 crores to the Union Government, Karnataka demanded at least 203 tmc.ft. of water for the project. The Union Government constituted the Gulhati Commission, which suggested that a gauging system be established at various points on the river's course. It said that only after assessing the water yield could any reallocation be done.

It was later that the Krishna Water Dispute Tribunal headed by Mr. Justice R.S. Bachawat was established. Announcing its final award on May 27, 1976, the tribunal allocated 734 tmc.ft. of water to Karnataka, out of which 173 tmc.ft. was earmarked for the UKP. The project underwent many changes, and the outlay was revised often, due to cost escalation.

Official statistics indicate that despite two leaders from this famine-hit area becoming chief ministers -- the late Veerendra Patil and Mr. B.D. Jatti -- the project did not figure in the government's priority list. The expenditure on the project till 1971 was only Rs. 9.76 crores. Each successive government put the project on the backburner till 1994. Even the World Bank suspended assistance in November 1992 because of the poor implementation of the rehabilitation and resettlement work.

Casual approach: An undesirable development in 1979 showed how this nationally important project had been treated casually. After obtaining permission, the nearby Chimmalagi sand quarry was chosen as the source of sand for the Alamatti Dam work. However, the Department of Mines and Geology leased out the quarry to a private contractor, hampering the dam construction. Nothing was done to annul the faulty lease. But, the leaseholder disclaimed the sand quarry after a year-long effort by the dam construction company to persuade him to do so.

Notwithstanding the earlier dithering, the project has been given high priority in the last six years. A sum of Rs. 5,940 crores has been spent since its inception. Out of this, a little over Rs. 4,700 crores was spent in the last six years. Almost all project works are being executed on priority, and many works have reached an advanced stage.

Power project: Another development is the recent decision of the State Government to entrust the 297-MW hydel power project at the dam site to the Karnataka Power Corporation Limited (KPCL), and cancel the earlier Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with a private sector company, the Chamundi Power Corporation (CPC), signed in 1995.

The KPCL is likely to commence construction next April after preliminary procedures, such as signing an agreement with a financial institution for funding the project (cost Rs. 715 crores), are completed.

According to a senior official, the KPCL intends to complete the project before the end of 2002, since the penstocks and other infrastructure are readily available. Once the project is completed, the power supply in this region will improve considerably.

Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Section  : Southern States
Previous : State seeks improved FCI procurement
Next     : AICC(I) to review ministers' performance