Manufacturing of crest gates for Tungabhadra dam in progress: Deputy CM DK Shivakumar

BENGALURU: Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar told the Legislative Assembly that the manufacturing of crest gates for the Tungabhadra dam was going on. Shivakumar announced that the Tungabhadra Dam Board has issued a tender to an Ahmedabad-based company for manufacturing 33 new crest gates.

Currently, six gates are being worked on at Gadag and Hosapete, with fabrication already complete. Shivakumar emphasised the need to expedite the process and delegate work for quicker completion.

“The Tungabhadra Dam Board has issued the tender for making 33 crest gates to an Ahmedabad-based company. Work on six crest gates is currently underway at Gadag and Hosapete, with the fabrication work already complete. We have instructed the engineers to speed up the process. We have also informed them to delegate some of the work to others for quicker completion”, he told the Legislative Assembly.

Due to safety reasons, the dam’s water storage is limited to 80 tmcft, which won’t be enough to support the second crop. Shivakumar explained that installing crest gates wouldn’t be possible if water is released for the second crop.

“We can only store 80 tmcft of water this year due to safety reasons. Given this, we will not be able to release water for the second crop. Crest gate installation won’t be possible if we give water for the second crop. Our farmers are worried about their crops, and I spoke to dam officials about it. They asked if the dam’s safety was more important than the second crop,” he said.

The Dam Board has decided to follow the recommendations of Kannaiah Naidu, restricting water storage to 76 pc or 80 tmcft. “As per the recommendations of Kannaiah Naidu, we can store only 76 pc or 80 tmcft of water in the dam. Hence, the Dam Board has taken a decision to abide by that recommendation. We are ready to protect the dam with our own money, even if others don’t pay for it. We will save our farmers and their farmers too”, he added.

The repair costs for the dam will be shared among Karnataka (66 pc), Andhra Pradesh, and Telangana (33 pc). However, Andhra Pradesh hasn’t allocated funds for the repairs. Karnataka has offered to cover Andhra Pradesh’s share to avoid delays, but the offer hasn’t been accepted.

“Karnataka has to bear 66 pc of the repair costs while Andhra Pradesh and Telangana bear 33 pc. But Andhra Pradesh has not even earmarked funds for it. We had told the officials that we would foot Andhra Pradesh’s bill as well in the interest of time, but they are not willing to accept it. We don’t want any inconvenience to farmers,and hence we volunteered to pay the money”, added the Deputy CM.

Shivakumar also discussed the proposal for a new balancing reservoir at Navile, which would cost Rs 11,000 crore. The proposal has been submitted to the Tungabhadra Dam Board, but no response has been received. Shivakumar expressed frustration over not being able to connect with the Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister to discuss the project.

“I Tried speaking to Andhra Pradesh CM about Navile balance reservoir three times but could not. I don’t know why the Andhra CM hasn’t come forward to talk to us. Due to silting, the capacity of the dam is reduced to 105 tmcft. Hence, we have decided to build a balance reservoir at a cost of Rs 11,000 crore. We submitted the proposal to the TB Dam Board, but we haven’t received any response. We have also written to the CMs of the other two riparian states”, he said.

The Tungabhadra Dam, built in 1953, has been facing issues with its crest gates. In August, a gate was washed away due to heavy water inflow, prompting concerns about the dam’s safety and the need for repairs. Shivakumar has been advocating for replacing all 33 crest gates to ensure the dam’s safety and support farmers in the region. (ANI)