BBMB to check silt in Bhakra dam

ROPAR: The Bhakra Beas Management Board will check the silt inflow into Bhakra dam which has become a threat for machinery of the dam and a hindrance in smooth power generation.
The recent heavy rainfall in catchment areas of the reservoir has resulted in heavy silt flow into the dam. As per estimates, around 200 to 250 feet of silt has got accumulated at Bilaspur near Naina Devi, which is just 10 kms away from the main reservoir.
K K Kaul, chief engineer, power, BBMB, said that silt may cause damage to turbines and also choke other machinery. A small percentage of silt do goes through the turbines normally, but an increase in its quantity can choke the turbines and other machinery parts,'' he said.
The dam has never been de-silted ever since it was built and the silt has been increasing gradually over the last about ten years. The rising silt in Bhakra dam is due to heavy deforestation in the vicinity of the reservoir and cultivation of land in reservoir bed by local residents. Due to cultivation, reservoir land has become soft and gets washed away with rain water into the reservoir, sources said.
Chief engineer, irrigation, BBMB, Baldev Singh pointed out that heavy deforestation occurs in villages like Rampur, Galuah and Chalela, due to which, silt flows in along with rain water. "We have finalized plans to check the silt in the dam, using special testing machines this year. Though silt poses no risk to the dam now, measures are needed to check the continuous silt inflow into the dam," he said.
In the past, BBMB had launched a special drive to combat the problem of silt by undertaking plantation around the reservoir area, spending lakhs of rupees, but no positive result were achieved, sources said.