Ten people on Sunday stuck in the Koldam dam in Himachal Pradesh’s Mandi district due to a rise in water level amid incessant rainfall. This comes as the Himachal Pradesh government has found that 21 out of the 23 dams in the state have violated safety norms. The government said it will take punitive measures against the management responsible for these breaches. The negligence of government agencies in adequately monitoring the dams has also been identified as a contributing factor to these violations.
VIDEO | Ten people stuck in Koldam dam in Himachal Pradesh’s Mandi district due to rise in water level amid incessant rainfall. More details are awaited.
(Source: Third Party) pic.twitter.com/O3IR6TsFeB
— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) August 20, 2023
Himachal Chief Secretary Prabodh Saxena informed that a total of 21 dams have failed to adhere to safety protocols, and legal actions will be pursued against the implicated parties.
“As many as 21 dams have not adhered to the safety norms and legal action will be taken against them,” Chief Secretary Prabodh Saxena told news agency PTI on Sunday, adding that officers have been directed to compile a comprehensive report detailing the extent of damage resulting from the disregard exhibited by the dam operators.
Among the dams found to be in violation are the Larji hydropower project in Mandi and Jateon in Sirmaur, operated by the HP State Electricity Board, as well as the Sawra Kuddu project in Shimla and Sainj in Kullu, run by the HP Power Corporation.
Himachal Pradesh is host to 23 hydel projects with a collective capacity of 9,203 megawatts, managed by various entities including the National Hydro Power Corporation, National Thermal Power Corporation, Bhakra Beas Management Board, Satluj Jal Vidyut Nigam Limited, and Independent Power Producers. Additionally, there are six ongoing projects with a combined capacity of 1,916 MW.
As per PTI’s report, the officials highlighted that only the Kol Dam in Bilaspur and the Karcham Wangtoo project in Kinnaur have adhered to the prescribed water release guidelines. The urgency of reinforcing the early warning system was underscored after a tragic incident in 2014, where 24 students from Andhra Pradesh lost their lives due to the sudden release of water from the Larji Dam without prior notice.
Notably, the recent flooding in certain low-lying areas of Punjab and Himachal Pradesh has been attributed to the unplanned release of water from dams including Pong, Pandoh, and Malana.
In response to these revelations, Chief Secretary Saxena chaired a meeting focused on water discharge safety concerns where he stressed the importance of holding dam authorities accountable for failing to comply with the Dam Safety Act (DSA) and the 2015 guidelines set forth by the Central Water Commission (CWC), PTI reported. Saxena said that the time for persuasion and discussions had ended and stressed the need for decisive action against those responsible for these lapses.
The recent crisis downstream from the reservoirs in the state can be traced back to the failure in conducting proper dam safety checks, which were either neglected or not carried out in accordance with the established DSA guidelines, he added, as per PTI.