Writes Pankaj Kumar IAS, Secretary, Department of Water Resources, River Development & Ganga Rejuvenation, Ministry of Jal Shakti, Government of India as India is all set to organise ‘International Conference on Dam Safety.’
Dams, as super water-structures play a dual role in harnessing the river water for accelerating socio-economic growth as well as effectively mitigating the calamities like floods and droughts faced by a large population of the world. Dams also cater to fundamental human needs, such as drinking water, industrial usage, agricultural irrigation, flood control, hydroelectric power generation, and inland navigation. Over the years, they have played a pivotal role in India’s progress, through supporting the Green Revolution by creating fertile “food bowls” to sustainably tackle the hungers of millions.
India is a land of mighty perennial rivers. History of dam building in India has a long and glorious past, as they have been in existence since age old times. India’s first dam is the Kallanai (Grand Anicut) built on the Cauvery river by King Karikalan of the Chola dynasty around 2,000 years ago. The dam is still functional and irrigates millions of acres, spans 329 m in length and 20 m in width. The 24 m high earthen dam of Thonnur Tank in Karnataka is over 1,000 years old, and it is still in use.
However, it was only post-independence, India has invested substantially in infrastructure necessary to store surface runoff through the dam reservoirs. At independence, in 1947, there were fewer than 300 large dams in India. After independence, in order to become self-sufficient in food production and economically self-reliant, number of multi-purpose river valley projects were taken up. By the year 2000, the number of large dams in the country had grown to over 4,000, more than half of them built between 1971 and 1989. At present India ranks third in the world in dam building, after China & USA. In India, there are 5,334 large completed dams and another 411 dams are under construction with a combined storage over 300 billion cubic meters (BCM) of water, for meeting varied needs of the country, overcoming issues of space and time linked vagaries of rainfall. Besides, there are several thousand smaller and medium dams in the country. Although almost every State of India has large dams, the major chunk is situated in Maharashtra (2,394), Madhya Pradesh (906) and Gujarat (632).
These dams and their dependant infrastructure were constructed with large financial investments, and also with enduring pains of displacement and rehabilitation for the people affected by dam submergence. Today, they irrigate a sizeable portion of India’s cultivable land, and also meet the increasing demand of water for the country’s domestic, municipal, industrial, power, and tourism needs. To ensure continued water security, urgent measures are required for the safety and serviceability of these dams. Not only this, dam safety is also vital for protecting the properties and lives of people downstream of dams.
Many of the Indian dams are considerably old. About 85% of the India’s dams are more than 25 years old and about 234 dams are more than 100 years old. Dams are complex structures and require proper upkeep and maintenance. The ageing dam infrastructure requires focus on safety aspects in terms of meeting prevalent safety & risk mitigation norms and overall safety linked perceptions of large population living downstream. The onus of ensuring dam safety in India rests primarily with dam owners, with Central and State agencies and other organizations involved in various stages of dam development, from conception to operation and maintenance.
As per the records, maintained by the Central Water Commission, India has so far encountered 42 large dam failures beginning with Tigra dam in 1917 and ending with the most recent case of Annamaya Dam (Andhra Pradesh) in November, 2021. The failure of Machu dam-II in Gujarat, in 1979, has been India’s worst dam failure disaster – with irrevocable consequences on the social and economic fabric of the affected Morbi town. During the recent failure of Annamaya Dam in Andhra Pradesh in 2021, at least 20 people died. The 2018 extreme flood in Kerala drew our urgent attention to the issues of dam safety and cascading dam operations.
Recognizing the diverse dam safety practices across states and organizations, the Central Government, under the visionary leadership of Hon’ble Prime Minister, enacted the Dam Safety Act, 2021. This landmark legislation aims to unify dam safety procedures, prevent dam-related disasters, and emphasize the creation of a multi-tier institutional mechanism for comprehensive dam safety management. The Act also addresses the emergency management protocols, flood warning system, comprehensive dam safety evaluation, risk assessment, stakeholders’ consultation, capacity building etc.
Before enactment of Act, only few States had proper institutional set-up and only few states had well established Dam Safety Organisations. However, post Dam Safety Act, 2021 enactment, all the States/UTs (31) have constituted State Committee on Dam Safety and State Dam Safety Organisations. Dam inspection, a critical activity, has also registered a manifold increase since 2022. Capacity building is an important area. Government of India has established the International Centre of Excellence for Dams at Indian Institute of Technology, Roorkee in February, 2023. This Centre will provide specialized technical support in investigations, modelling, research and innovations, and technical support services to the Indian and overseas dam owners. A National Centre for Earthquake Safety of Dams has been established at MNIT Jaipur. To create a large pool of experts in various domains of dam safety, Master Program on Dam Safety & Dam Engineering have been started at two premier institutes – IIT Roorkee & IISC Bengaluru.
Recognizing the challenges in dam safety and security, the Government of India, with financial support from the World Bank, initiated the Dam Rehabilitation and Improvement Project (DRIP) in April 2012. This project aimed to enhance the safety and operational performance of select existing dams while strengthening dam safety institutions, adopting a comprehensive system-wide management approach. DRIP, a State Sector Scheme with a Central component, covered 223 dams in 7 States and was successfully concluded in March 2021 at a cost of Rs 2,567 crore, comprehensively addressing hydrological, structural, and operational safety.
Continuing the focus on dam safety, the Ministry of Jal Shakti launched Phase II and Phase III of the DRIP scheme in October 2021, covering 19 States and 3 Central Agencies. With a combined budget of Rs 10,211 crore (Phase II: Rs 5,107 crore & Phase III: Rs 5,104 crore), this 10-year initiative aims to rehabilitate 736 dams and enhance dam safety measures. Phase II of the scheme is currently under co-financing by two prominent multilateral funding agencies – the World Bank and the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) – each contributing US$ 250 million.
Other important measures that DRIP-II will support include flood forecasting systems and integrated reservoir operations that will contribute to building climate resilience; the preparation and implementation of Emergency Action Plans to enable vulnerable downstream communities to prepare for and enhance resilience against the possible negative impacts and risks of climate change; and piloting of supplemental revenue generation schemes such as floating solar panels, tourism development, fisheries.
One of the facets of dam safety is the organization of conferences and workshops, providing an invaluable platform for the exchange of expertise among dam professionals globally to enhance institutional capabilities of various stakeholders. To date, three National Dam Safety Conferences and two International Dam Safety Conferences have been successfully conducted, with active participation from national and international dam professionals. These conferences have received an overwhelming response from the dam fraternity.
The International Conference on Dam Safety (ICDS) 2023 will mark the beginning of a series of conferences planned under Dam Rehabilitation and Improvement Project Phase II and III. Scheduled to be held during September 14 – 15, 2023, this conference is a collaborative effort between the Department of Water Resources, River Development & Ganga Rejuvenation, Ministry of Jal Shakti, Government of India, and various key stakeholders, including the Rajasthan Water Resources Department, Central Water Commission, National Dam Safety Authority, MNIT Jaipur, WAPCOS Ltd, the World Bank and Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank. The venue is Jaipur, Rajasthan, a State renowned for its captivating tourist attractions, rich heritage, vibrant culture, and stunning landscapes. The inaugural session will be graced by the Hon’ble Vice President of India.
ICDS 2023 will serve as a platform for presentation and discussion of technical papers and case studies, engaging engineers, hydrologists, geologists, dam owners and operators, industry representatives, academic and research institutes, and other stakeholders from across the globe specializing in dam safety. In parallel with the conference, an exhibition will be hosted at the venue, featuring products, charts, banners, and photographs showcasing the latest developments, technologies, and solutions in various facets of dam safety.
In the backdrop of G20 Summit under the leadership of India, ICDS 2023 will bring together experts and practitioners across the world to facilitate mutual learning and technological advancements in the realm of dam safety.
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