Skip to main content

Central Narmada authority, not SSNNL, responsible for Gujarat floods: Govt insider

By Rajiv Shah

A top Gujarat government insider, who has worked for umpteen number of years in the state’s huge Narmada and water resources establishment, believes that the recent controversy surrounding the “extraordinary” flooding of Bharuch district of South Gujarat from August 29 to September 2 Gujarat, fails to take into account a major factor.
Giving a new twist to the controversy, this insider, who has wished to remain anonymous, told Counterview that the Sardar Sarovar Dam (SSD) operators – or for that matter the Sardar Sarovar Narmada Nigam Ltd (SSNNL), a Gujarat government agency responsible for the mammoth dam on the Narmada river – have “no say” in the release of the waters, which may have allegedly caused flooding of Narmada in Bharuch.
The controversy follows an article by well-known environmentalist Himanshu Thakkar of the South Asia Network on Dams, Rivers and People (SANDRP) accusing the SSD operators for operating the dam “callously, almost cruelly, without consideration of the impact of the operation in the downstream area”, wondering why they did not go in for staggered release of water earlier, even though all the information about heavy rainfall was available since August 16.
The SSD operators released whopping 10 lakh cusecs (cubic feet per second) or 28,320 cumecs (cubic meters per second) of water from the dam, which continued for “3-4 days”, leading to the massive flooding in Bharuch, causing immense hardships to the people and massive soil erosion “on the banks of Narmada and its tributaries”, Thakkar alleged.
In their reply (endorsed by SSNNL as the view “independent engineers”), four former senior government officials – two of them ex-chief engineers of SSNNL – criticised Thakkar (without naming him) that some well-known activists “who are anti-dam in general and anti-Sardar Sarovar in particular” have been attempting to curse the SSD and its project authorities “by making false allegations of having created avoidable flood disaster".
The four ex-officials claimed, SSD operators “made use of” state of the art technology and with scientific analysis and coordinated operations of various reservoirs “with the help” of the Central Water Commission (CWC) and the Narmada Control Authority (NCA) in such a way that the discharge of water from the dam “could be restricted to less than 10 lakh cusecs for most of the times … as against the spillway discharge carrying capacity of 30 lakh cusecs.”
Taking issue with both the views, the top state insider said that SSD, as also all dams on the Narmada river upstream in Madhya Pradesh, are operated under the Narmada Water Disputes Tribunal (NWDT) Award of 1979, and SSD operators, or for that matter SSNNL, in fact all other operators of the projects that have come up on Narmada, are mere “an implementing and operating agencies” whether for the release of the waters from the dams or the operation of their power houses. 
The NWDT Award, he says, provides for “a machinery to implement”, which is called Narmada Control Authority (NCA). This authority “started functioning on December 20, 1980” as a “body corporate with representatives of the four states of Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Rajasthan and representatives of the Government of India. Secretary, (water resources), Government of India, is the ex-officio chairman of the Authority.”
Seeking to put all the responsibility for SSD’s operations (which allegedly caused massive floods), this insider said, or SSNNL, or defending them (which the four ex-officials have done) would be totally wrong, the insider said, adding, it would have been better, instead, to look into "what were the directions of NCA, in the recent times to operate the gates of SSD and to operate the power houses during this period.” 
Gujarat, as per the NWDT award, is an implementing and operating agency of Sardar Sarovar Dam, power houses and Main Canal
“Unless NCA communication is made public it is not correct to judge the actions of SSNNL with regard to floods in Bharuch district, as SSNNL is only supposed to carry out the directions of NCA”, the insider said.
At the same time, this insider underlined, “SSNNL should share NCA directions on its website or through a press note, instead of relying on what it calls third party independent engineers.”
The insider explained, “SSP is an interstate project fully governed by the Narmada Water Disputes Tribunal (NWDT) Award of 1979. This Award is final and binding on all the four party states, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Maharashtra and Rajasthan, and the Union of India, on various aspects relating to the project. The Award is under operation and will remain under operation till it is reviewed in 2024, i.e., after 45 years of its pronouncement.” 
As an inter-state body, according to this insider, NCA has also “established Real-Time Data Acquisition System (RTDAS) comprising of 96 remote stations and a Master Control Centre for the acquisition of real-time hydro-meteorological data” in order to formulate and monitor “reservoir regulation, and also regulation of water releases from Tawa, Bargi and Indira Sagar Projects in Madhya Pradesh and the Sardar Sarovar Project in Gujarat, and also regulated releases of water to SSP ex-Maheshwar project, as per directives of NWDT.”
Quoting NWDT Award’s Clause XIV,  the insider said, it has “set up of machinery for implementing the decision of the tribunal” by constituting NCA, whose job is to includes “storage, apportionment, regulation and control of the Narmada waters; sharing of power benefits from Sardar Sarovar project; regulated releases by Madhya Pradesh”, and so on.
The insider said, NCA is aided by a sub-committee called Sardar Sarovar Reservoir Regulation Committee (SSRRC) under the provisions of the Award with “representatives of all the four participating states, the Central Water Commission (CWC), the Central Electricity Authority (CEA), the Ministry of Water Resources (MoWR) etc., and other expert invitees, in order to ensure “regulated releases from Madhya Pradesh, storages/levels in various dams etc.”
Underlining that “SSRRC/NCA has the duty and responsibility of regulation of gates of SSD”, the insider said, “Gujarat, as per the provisions of the Award, is an implementing and operating agency of the Sardar Sarovar Dam, its power houses and the Main Canal, and the state has to implement the directions of NCA.”

Comments

Unknown said…
Very informative and thought provoking artivle
Mystery man said…
Sir,

Dissolve Central Water Commission under Ministry of Jala Shakti at central government, run by "Chaploos" type of people who have zero knowledge about hydrology and hydraulics. Kick out Indian Administrative Service from Ministry of Jala Shakti.

See how our dam management and water management improves.

TRENDING

Loktantra Bachao Abhiyan raises concerns over Jharkhand Adivasis' plight in Assam, BJP policies

By Our Representative  The Loktantra Bachao Abhiyan (Save Democracy Campaign) has issued a pressing call to protect Adivasi rights in Jharkhand, highlighting serious concerns over the treatment of Jharkhandi Adivasis in Assam. During a press conference in Ranchi on November 9, representatives from Assam, Chhattisgarh, and Madhya Pradesh criticized the current approach of BJP-led governments in these states, arguing it has exacerbated Adivasi struggles for rights, land, and cultural preservation.

Promoting love or instilling hate and fear: Why is RSS seeking a meeting with Rahul Gandhi?

By Ram Puniyani*  India's anti-colonial struggle was marked by a diverse range of social movements, one of the most significant being Hindu-Muslim unity and the emergence of a unified Indian identity among people of all religions. The nationalist, anti-colonial movement championed this unity, best embodied by Mahatma Gandhi, who ultimately gave his life for this cause. Gandhi once wrote, “The union that we want is not a patched-up thing but a union of hearts... Swaraj (self-rule) for India must be an impossible dream without an indissoluble union between the Hindus and Muslims of India. It must not be a mere truce... It must be a partnership between equals, each respecting the religion of the other.”

Right-arm fast bowler who helped West Indies shape arguably greatest Test team in cricket history

By Harsh Thakor*  Malcolm Marshall redefined what it meant to be a right-arm fast bowler, challenging the traditional laws of biomechanics with his unique skill. As we remember his 25th death anniversary on November 4th, we reflect on the legacy he left behind after his untimely death from colon cancer. For a significant part of his career, Marshall was considered one of the fastest and most formidable bowlers in the world, helping to shape the West Indies into arguably the greatest Test team in cricket history.

Swami Vivekananda's views on caste and sexuality were 'painfully' regressive

By Bhaskar Sur* Swami Vivekananda now belongs more to the modern Hindu mythology than reality. It makes a daunting job to discover the real human being who knew unemployment, humiliation of losing a teaching job for 'incompetence', longed in vain for the bliss of a happy conjugal life only to suffer the consequent frustration.

A Hindu alternative to Valentine's Day? 'Shiv-Parvati was first love marriage in Universe'

By Rajiv Shah  The other day, I was searching on Google a quote on Maha Shivratri which I wanted to send to someone, a confirmed Shiv Bhakt, quite close to me -- with an underlying message to act positively instead of being negative. On top of the search, I chanced upon an article in, imagine!, a Nashik Corporation site which offered me something very unusual. 

Andhra team joins Gandhians to protest against 'bulldozer action' in Varanasi

By Rosamma Thomas*  November 1 marked the 52nd day of the 100-day relay fast at the satyagraha site of Rajghat in Varanasi, seeking the restoration of the 12 acres of land to the Sarva Seva Sangh, the Gandhian organization that was evicted from the banks of the river. Twelve buildings were demolished as the site was abruptly taken over by the government after “bulldozer” action in August 2023, even as the matter was pending in court.  

Will Bangladesh go Egypt way, where military ruler is in power for a decade?

By Vijay Prashad*  The day after former Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina left Dhaka, I was on the phone with a friend who had spent some time on the streets that day. He told me about the atmosphere in Dhaka, how people with little previous political experience had joined in the large protests alongside the students—who seemed to be leading the agitation. I asked him about the political infrastructure of the students and about their political orientation. He said that the protests seemed well-organized and that the students had escalated their demands from an end to certain quotas for government jobs to an end to the government of Sheikh Hasina. Even hours before she left the country, it did not seem that this would be the outcome.

Will Left victory in Sri Lanka deliver economic sovereignty plan, go beyond 'tired' IMF agenda?

By Atul Chandra, Vijay Prashad*  On September 22, 2024, the Sri Lankan election authority announced that Anura Kumara Dissanayake of the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP)-led National People’s Power (NPP) alliance won the presidential election. Dissanayake, who has been the leader of the left-wing JVP since 2014, defeated 37 other candidates, including the incumbent president Ranil Wickremesinghe of the United National Party (UNP) and his closest challenger Sajith Premadasa of the Samagi Jana Balawegaya. 

Green Revolution’s reliance on chemical fertilizers, pesticides contributing to Punjab's health crisis

By Bharat Dogra, Jagmohan Singh*  Punjab was once synonymous with robust health, particularly in its rural areas, where farmers were known for their strength and vitality. However, in recent years, reports from these villages tell a different story, with rising cases of serious health issues, including cancer. What led to this decline? The answer lies largely in the erosion of good nutrition, once a hallmark of Punjabi village life. The health of a population is closely tied to its nutrition, and Punjab's reputation as a provider of high-quality nutrition has suffered greatly. The loss of biodiversity in agriculture has led to a decrease in the variety and quality of crops, resulting in poorer nutrition. Pulses, a key source of protein, have seen a steep decline in cultivation due to the disruption of traditional farming practices by the Green Revolution. This has had a detrimental effect on both soil and human health. Although pulses are still available in the market, they are exp

Tributes paid to pioneer of Naxalism in Punjab, who 'dodged' police for 60 yrs

By Harsh Thakor*  Jagjit Singh Sohal, known as Comrade Sharma, a pioneer of Naxalism in Punjab, passed away on October 20 at the age of 96. Committed to the Naxalite cause and a prominent Maoist leader, Sohal, who succeeded Charu Majumdar, played hide and seek with the police for almost six decades. He was cremated in Patiala.