Cuttack: The Water Resources department will soon replace the old and rusted iron gates of Jobra barrage on Mahanadi and Birupa barrage at Choudwar.
The Orissa Construction Company (OCC) has been roped in by the department to install new gates at those two barrages. “We have signed a pact with the OCC for the replacement of all the gates at the two barrages. These gates are at least 30 years’ old. A survey has been conducted for implementation of the project,” said Mahanadi barrage division executive engineer Sagar Mohanty.
Then president Neelam Sanjiva Reddy had laid the foundation for the Mahanadi barrage project December 25, 1978.
The project was mooted to irrigate agricultural land and manage floodwater in Mahanadi and its tributary Birupa.
The Water Resources department had dug Taladanda canal and Kendrapara canal to supply water to agricultural lands.
“The OCC will replace 95 iron gates of Mahanadi barrage and 15 of Birupa barrage. The Water Resources department has allocated `42 crore for the project,” Mohanty said.
According to sources, senior officials of the department had visited the two barrages immediately after the last rainy season and examined the iron gates. They had submitted a report to the state government, asking for replacement of the old gates at the two barrages.
“The state government has taken several steps to manage floodwater in Mahanadi. An abandoned British-era barrage on the river has been dismantled at an expenditure of `27 crore to facilitate free flow of water. Now OCC is dredging an islet-like formation in Mahanadi,” Mohanty informed.
Slugfest over dwindling inflow into Hirakud dam
Bhubaneswar: Construction of several barrages on river Mahanadi upstream in Chhattisgarh leading to depletion of water in Hirakud reservoir by 31 per cent in January has opened floodgates of dispute between the ruling BJD and BJP.
In his reaction to the issue, Cuttack MLA Debasish Samantray (BJD) said Tuesday, “If water in Hirakud reservoir continues to decrease, it will cause trouble for the state this summer.’’
Criticising Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Raman Singh who had claimed during panchayat polls that the dispute could be sorted out within three minutes, Samantray said the BJP leaders should explain why the water is dwindling if the crisis could be dealt with within minutes.
Although talks over Mahanadi issue did not make much headway, the BJD maintains its firm stand over the issue in Orissa’s best interests, and the ruling party will continue to fight for it, claimed the Barabati-Cuttack MLA.
Meanwhile, BJP leader Sajjan Sharma has said, “The delay in resolving the dispute is due to lack of BJD government’s political will.”
“Raman Singh during his visit to the state had invited the state government to join talks on the issue. The state government, however, is yet to respond,” Sharma said, adding, “Instead of politicising the issue, the BJD government should take steps to utilise 82 per cent of Mahanadi water which is going waste into the sea.”
Notably, the state government has informed the house during the Budget session some of the barrages in Chhattisgarh have been ‘‘operationalised’’ for industrial purposes and this reduced 33 per cent of inflow into Hirakud dam in December 2016 compared to the inflow during the corresponding period between 2005 and 2015. The inflow also went down by 31 per cent in January 2017 compared to the average inflow into the reservoir during the corresponding month between 2006 and 2016.
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