CENTRE GIVES GO-AHEAD TO SHAHPUR KANDI DAM PROJECT ON RAVI RIVER
Union cabinet clears grant of ₹485 crore for irrigation; dam will minimise the outflow of Ravi water to Pakistan
The Union Cabinet on Thursday approved the Shahpurkandi dam project on the Ravi river in Punjab, a move that will help arrest India’s share of water flowing into Pakistan, a statement said. For this, a central assistance of ₹485.38 crore, for irrigation component, will be provided over five years from 2018-19 to 2022-23. The Indus Waters Treaty was signed between India and Pakistan for sharing of Indus waters. According to the treaty, India got the full rights for utilisation of waters of the three eastern rivers — Ravi, Beas and Satluj.
CHANDIGARH: With the Centre clearing the 206-MW Shahpur Kandi Dam on the Ravi river on Punjab-J&K border, the project that was held up since August 2014 is set to get rolling.
The Union cabinet also approved a central grant of ₹485.38 crore for irrigation works, which will come in five years — from 2018-19 to 2022-23.
The project when cleared in 2008 was initially estimated at ₹2,285 crore, but the cost has now gone up to ₹2,715 crore. Apart from the central assistance of ₹485.38 crore, the balance cost ₹1,973.53 crore (irrigation component: ₹5,64.63 crore and power turbines ₹1,408.90 crore) will be borne by Punjab.
The project downstream of Ranjit Sagar dam was cleared by the previous UPA government in 2008 and it was touted as a project of national importance.
Commissioning of the project, which is expected in four years, will minimise the outflow of the river water that goes waste through the Madhopur headworks to Pakistan.
The project has the potential of irrigating 5,000 hactares of agricultural land in Punjab and 32,173 hectares in J&K. The land on both sides of the dam is fertile and both governments see big hopes on changing the economies of the area the dam will feed.
A joint committee of Central Water Commission, chief engineers of Punjab and J&K would be constituted to monitor the implementation of the project. The ministry of water resources has also accepted the revised project cost to ₹2,715 crore.
“Shahpur Kandi barrage (dam) is part of the Thein dam (Ranjit Sagar dam) project, which is built over 61% of J&K’s land. It was initially a Punjab-J&K joint venture but Punjab was to fulfil certain promises such as 20% power of 120 megawatts to our state from the Thein dam and share of water from the Shahpur Kandi barrage, which never materialised,” a top J&K official said, adding that in the past 35 years since the pact was signed, the scenario has changed and things needed a fresh look.
It was in 1979 that an agreement was signed between the then Punjab CM Parkash Singh Badal and his J&K counterpart Sheikh Abdullah for the project.