Desilting Tungabhadra Dam not feasible, says water minister

BENGALURU: The desilting operation of Tungabhadra Dam appears to be caught in a wrangle between thousands of farmers, who have volunteered to undertake the initiative, and the state government, which is terming the exercise “technically and financially unfeasible“.

While the farmers are of the opinion that each truckload of silt removed from the dam will increase its storage capacity, the government is contending that, instead of wasting money on desilting, it would be more benefi cial to build a smaller reservoir downstream at

Navali

in

Koppal

district. The issue was debated on the floor of the assembly.

Maski MLA Pratapgouda Patil

asked what steps had been taken by the government to desilt Tungabhadra Dam. Water resources minister MB Patil said that the total amount of silt accumulated was close to 33tmcft, against its storage capacity of 132.47tmcft.

Patil said, “Global tenders were called in 2010, and two companies submitted a concept paper.But it was not taken forward due to technical and financial reasons. In 2012, a Kochi-based firm backed out in the last minute. In 2015-16, no firm came forward with a proper plan.“ The minister said there were logistical problems involved. “We would require 67,000 hectares if silt was dumped to a height of 10ft in open land. If the height were reduced to six feet, we'd need 1.2 lakh hectares. The process would cost Rs 5,000 crore,“Patil added.

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