Nagarjuna Sagar Dam:

Nagarjuna

Sagar

Dam was

built

across

the Krishna

river at

Nagarjuna Sagar where the river is forming boundary between

Nalgonda District in Telangana and Guntur district In Andhra Pradesh
states in India. The construction duration of the dam was between the
years of 1955 and 1967. The dam created a water reservoir whose
gross storage capacity is 11.472 billion cubic metres (405.1109 cu ft).

The dam is 490 feet (150 m) tall from its deepest foundation and
0.99 miles (1.6 km) long with 26 flood gates which are 42 feet
(13 m) wide and 45 feet (14 m) tall. Nagarjuna Sagar was the
earliest in the series of large infrastructure projects termed as "modern
temples" initiated for achieving the Green Revolution in India. It is also
one of the earliest multi-purpose irrigation and hydro-electric projects
in India.
up

to

Nagarjuna Sagar dam is designed and constructed to utilise

the

last

drop

of

water

impounded

in

its

reservoir

of

405 TMC gross storage capacity which is the second biggest water
reservoir in India.

Its Foundation stone was laid by First Prime

Minister Jawaharlal Nehru. The proposal to construct a dam to use the

excess waters of the Krishna river was planned by the Nizam of
Hyderabad and engaged British Engineers in 1903 to irrigate Telangana
though the work was never funded and made no progress. The dam
provides irrigation water to Nalgonda, Guntur, Prakasam, Krishna etc.
Reservoir: Nagarjuna Sagar Reservoir
Type of Dam: Earth Dam
Total Capacity: 408 Tmcft
Catchment Area: 83,000 sq miles

Surface Area: 285 sq. km.

Regional issue: Political issue b/w two states for water supply and
power generation.

4 places to visit near Nagarjuna Sagar Dam:

1. Ethipothala Waterfall: is a famous mountain stream, which falls
from a height of approximately 21.3 m into a lagoon. Three streams,
namely Nakka Vagu, Tummala Vagu and Chandravanka Vagu
combine to form this waterfall.

2. Macherla: is located on the bank of Chandra Vanka. Located in

Guntur District, the town has an average elevation of 136 m. During
the reign of the Haihaya Kings, Chennakesava Swamy Temple was
constructed in the town

3. Nagarjunakonda

Museum:

is

situated

in

the

island

of

Nagarjunakonda that is situated in the midst of the man-made

Nagarjunasagar Lake. It is a Buddhist Museum that is known to have
a wide collection of Buddhist structures and relics, which were
excavated during the construction.

4. Nagarjunasagar Wildlife Sanctuary: situated in Srisailam, is also

known as Nagarjunasagar-Srisailam Sanctuary. This sanctuary is

adjacent to the Nagarjunasagar Reservoir and covers an area of
approximately 3,568 sq. km.