By Alkesh Sharma, IANS,
Chandigarh : The water level in the reservoir of the Bhakra dam is receding. But the Bhakra Beas Management Board (BBMB) officials are not losing sleep over it as they say it will not affect the supply of drinking water.
With the temperature rising due to the early onset of summer, the water level in the Gobindsagar reservoir of the Bhakra dam, one of the largest hydroelectric projects in India, is down by nearly 40 feet compared to last year.
However, BBMB officials are optimistic that things will improve in the coming days and there is no need to press the panic button.
“The present water level in the Bhakra and Pong dams is low if we compare it with last year,” A.B. Aggarwal, newly appointed chairman of BBMB, told IANS. “It is because the dams depend on rains and last year we had around 45 percent less rainfall in the region and in the catchment area (in adjoining Himachal Pradesh),” he said.
“However, we should not create panic as the irrigation season is over and we have enough reservoirs to meet the demand for drinking water, our main concern.”
The hydroelectric projects under BBMB, spread across Himachal Pradesh and Punjab, are crucial for water supply and power generation for Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Rajasthan and the union territory of Chandigarh.
The states are already demanding more water from BBMB.
The Bhakra and Pong dams, on the rivers Sutlej and Beas respectively, are located in Himachal Pradesh, along the state’s border with Punjab.
The water level at the Bhakra dam was at 1,516 feet Wednesday whereas it was at 1,558 feet on the same day in 2009. The Pong dam recorded the water level at 1,297 feet Wednesday, 23 feet lower than last year.
“When the lowest level in the Bhakra dam touches 1,460 feet the situation becomes really critical. However, we always try to maintain the level of 1,506 feet and allow the outflow accordingly,” Aggarwal stated.
He said in the last 25 years, the dam, located about 135 km from Chandigarh, had recorded the lowest level in 2004 at 1,466 feet.
The highest level of water the Bhakra Dam can reach is 1,680 feet but in case of emergencies like cloudburst and flood, BBMB can increase the water level up to 1,685 feet. Beyond that, the gates of the dam have to be opened.
During the feeding period from May 21 to Sep 20, in which the snow melts on the higher reaches of the Himalayas and the monsoon hits the region during July-September, every day around 60,000 cusecs of water enter the Bhakra dam from the catchment area and the water level easily reaches near 1,680 feet, BBMB records show.
In view of the deteriorating levels in both the Bhakra and Pong reservoirs, BBMB restricted the outflow of water to partner states during the end of June last year.
BBMB also registered a decline in the production of electricity from the Bhakra dam but officials say the situation is unlikely to be the same this year.
“At present we are generating approximately 12 mu (million units) of electricity every day. We are not very much concerned about power generation as it is third on our priority scale after providing water for drinking and irrigation,” Aggarwal said.
As per BBMB records, an average of 35 mu of electricity is generated every day during the peak time.
All partner states have a fixed share of water and BBMB, an autonomous central government agency, increases or decreases the outflow depending upon the demands of states and circumstances.
From the Ravi-Beas basin, Punjab has a share of 30 percent and Haryana 21 percent while Rajasthan has 49 percent share. From the Satluj, Punjab’s share is 53.9 percent and Haryana’s 36 percent whereas Rajasthan has only 9.81 percent share of water.
M.K. Gupta, BBMB member for irrigation, told IANS: “Punjab has demanded 3,000 cusecs of water every day from April 1 to 10. Their requirement is low because the irrigation season is over, but from April 20 they have demanded 7,000 cusecs in view of the start of the cotton sowing season.”
“Similarly, Haryana and Rajasthan demanded 5,700 and 3,000 cusecs of water from April 1 to 10. Normally states prefer to give us their demand for a 10-day period,” he said.
(Alkesh Sharma can be contacted at [email protected])