As the SSD project stands completed after 56 years of its inception, perhaps it is time for a little introspection. We should introspect on how to make the SSD resilient to the various climate and disaster risks so that the gains that it delivers to the people are safeguarded. What is needed is a framework to reduce disaster risks faced by SSD. Under the leadership of NCA, GSDMA, and NDMA, the SSD can become India's first SFDRR compliant dam.
One of India's
largest hydro development projects, the Narmada Dam in Gujarat, has received
the final clearance from the Narmada Control Authority (NCA) giving a go ahead
to the Gujarat government to close the Sardar Sarovar Dam (SSD) gates on the
Narmada river. This marks the completion of the project, almost 56 years after
the dam's foundation was laid by the then Prime Minister in 1961. Perhaps it is
time to think of the various ways of reducing the risk of extreme events like
earthquakes, droughts or floods on projects such as the SSD.
These risk reduction
activities can be led by the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA)
which plays the key role in guiding national investments for disaster risk
reduction (DRR) activities across India. Similarly, this effort can also be
complemented by the Gujarat State Disaster Management Authority (GSDMA) which
builds the resilience of the citizens of Gujarat to the various disaster risks
faced by them. The NCA permitted increasing the dam's height by lowering of 30
sluice gates and impounding of water in the reservoir upto its Full Reservoir
Level (FRL) of EL 138.68 metres.
The latest move by
NCA will lead to completion of the project and will result in an increase in
the dam's storage capacity from 1565 million cubic metres (MCM) to 5740 MCM and
also lead to a rise in hydro power generation from current 1300 MW to 1450 MW.
The water audit (use
for agriculture, industrial and domestic purposes) can provide useful findings
for future risk reduction actions for the National Water Development Agency
(NWDA) and other water institutions.
About one crore
people would get assured drinking water and irrigation facilities. The SSD
would primarily meet the water requirement of drought prone and desert areas of
Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan. In some ways SSD is one of the biggest
anti-drought and anti-desertification measures in India.
The time has come to
protect SSD, the life line of Gujarat, from all kinds of disaster risks,
including that of floods and earthquakes by considering the recommendations of
the national authorities and the Sendai Framework.
The Resettlement and
Rehabilitation sub-group chaired by the Union Secretary of Social Justice &
Empowerment had also reviewed the rehabilitation and resettlement of project
affected families as per the Narmada Water Disputes Tribunal (NWDT) Award and
the Supreme Court order was delivered in February 2017. The next step is to
build the resilience of these families to the disaster risks they face.
Dam Safety Measures in India
Close to 80% of India's 5,198 large dams are over 25
years old and are confronted with safety challenges. Many experts believe that
the wear and tear along with the sub-par maintenance of these dams is
jeopardizing their safety. The most worrying are those dams that lie in high
seismic zones and can be destroyed by medium to high intensity earthquakes. In
this context, it is essential to review the safety measures and policies in
place to protect the big dams and economic growth of India.
The Central Water
Commission (CWC), which is the apex organisation for water resources
management, in 2006, asked the states to come up with an emergency action plan
for large dams and laid down guidelines for that purpose.
Needless to say
disaster preparedness needs to be an integral part of these safety measures to
prevent any mishaps. Ministry of Water Resources, River Development and Ganga
Rejuvenation with the financial support from the World Bank has embarked upon a
six year Dam Safety Rehabilitation and Improvement Project (DRIP) in the year
2012.
Reducing Disaster Risk
Water: There is a total of 28 million acre feet water of Narmada
in SSD. The state wise distribution is thus: 18.25 MAC to Madhya Pradesh, 9 MAC
to Gujarat, 0.5 MCA to Rajasthan and 0.25 MAC to Maharashtra. How to protect
this water flow from floods and drought?
Electricity: Total 1450 MW hydro power to be generated at the dam site
by SSD. Madhya Pradesh gets lion's share with 57 % total power to be generated,
Maharashtra gets second largest portion of 27 % and Gujarat gets 16 % of power.
What can be done to reduce flood, cyclone, and earthquake risk faced by this
hydro-power grid?
Canal Network: Total 71,747 km long canal network of SSD spread in over
20 districts in Gujarat. So far, the authorities have completed 47104 km long
network, which means 66 % works stand completed. Who will reduce risks of
disasters faced by these canals?
Project Affected Villages: Total 244 villages in Madhya Pradesh,
Maharashtra and Gujarat have been affected, submerged fully or partially due to
SSD. From these villages, 46840 families have been resettled and rehabilitated
with compensation by the authorities. What measures are needed to make these
families and villages resilient to disaster and climate risks?
– AIDMI Team
for any further information please contact: bestteam@aidmi.org
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