International Journal of Water Resources Development

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Large and small dams

R. Vidyasagar Rao

To cite this article: R. Vidyasagar Rao (1989) Large and small dams, International Journal of
Water Resources Development, 5:2, 136-142, DOI: 10.1080/07900628908722425

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 Large and small dams

R. Vidyasagar Rao

To meet the demands of a rising population India needs to increase its food output
by about 60% by the year 2000. This will involve a corresponding increase in the
area of irrigated land. A controversy has arisen over whether large dams should be
used to meet the target increase, since it has been asserted that large projects entail
severe adverse environmental and human impacts absent from smaller works. This
paper argues that small dams alone could not meet the country's needs, and if they
could they would cause greater damage than would result from a combination of
large and small dams.

Since the dawn of civilization India has primarily
been an agricultural country. Agriculture continues
to be the main occupation of the country, sustaining
about 70% of its population. Vast areas are now
being cultivated and crops are raised on them two or
three times every year.
Like most other countries, India enjoys uneven
rainfall. The annual average rainfall is about
1170 mm, but there are considerable variations in
both space and time. For example, Cherapunji in the
northeast on the Himalayas receives an annual
average rainfall of about 10 600 mm, which is
perhaps the highest in the world, while the
corresponding figure for the Rajasthan desert in the
northwest is only about 126 mm. The seasonal and
annual variations in rainfall make the Indian
economy and planning highly dependent on the
monsoons. The dependence of agriculture on
rainfall could render cultivation precarious, and
there have been very serious droughts which have
brought untold misery to the people in the past. This
underlines the need for properly harnessing and
utilizing the country's rivers by suitable irrigation
works through major, medium and minor irrigation
schemes so as to assure water availability for
agriculture.
The author is Director (Systems Engineering) of the
Central Water Commission, Sewa Bhavan, RK Puram,
New Delhi 110066, India.
India is a vast country with a kaleidoscopic
diversity of topography, climate and vegetation. Its
geographical area is 328 mha, of which the culturable
command area (irrigable area) is 186 mha, 56.7% of
the geographical area. India has a very large
population to support. According to the Seventh
Five-Year Plan published by the Planning Commis-
sion of India the projected poplation of the country
by AD 2001 would be 986 million (the 1986 level
being 761 million) and the demand for foodgrains
will increase from 150 million tons in 1985 to 240
million tons by the year 2000. Such a large increase
of about 60% in foodgrain demand can only be met
if the programme for the creation of irrigation
potential is stepped up.
The construction of dams as storage structures in
India is as old as recorded history. From 1860 to
1947 about 190 dams, big and small, were con-
structed with a total gross storage capacity of about
13 650 million m3. Small dams, particularly tanks,
have played a vital role in the history of Indian
agriculture. One notable irrigation structure, namely
the Grand Anicut built in the 2nd century AD in
southern India in the delta of the river Cauvery, has
stood the test of the time. Since independence a
number of large and medium dams have been
constructed and this has contributed substantially to
the rapid pace of development and growth in
irrigation potential. This in turn has played a
significant role in the country's attainment of
self-sufficiency in foodgrains. Hirakud, Bhakra and

136 0790-0627/89/020136-07$03.00 © 1989 Butterworth & Co (Publishers) Ltd


Nagarjunasagar are a few examples of major dams
completed since independence. By the end of the
Sixth Five-Year Plan a total irrigation potential of
69mha had been created, of which 30.82 mha were
created by major and medium projects. Out of the
ultimate potential of 113.5 mha the contribution
from major and medium projects is expected to be
58.5 mha. Thus it can be seen that minor irrigation
projects contributed about 55% of the irrigation
potential created so far, and their contribution to the
ultimate potential is expected to be around 50%.
Major, medium and minor irrigation schemes
In India the classification system is not based on the
size of dams. Irrigation projects are divided into
three categories: major, medium and minor. Until
recently this categorization was based on the cost of
the project. At present any project which has more
than 10 000 ha CCA (culturable command area) is
considered to be a major project. A medium project
irrigates an area ranging between 10 000 and 2000 ha
and any project below 2000 ha is considered to be
minor. By and large the major and medium schemes
comprise storage and diversion weirs across rivers
and streams while the minor schemes consist mainly
of small storage works and development of ground-
water resources by tubewells and dug wells. For the
purposes of this paper major and medium irrigation
schemes will be combined under the heading large
dams, and minor irrigation schemes will be referred
to as small dams.
The controversy over large v small dams
For some time there has been a controversy in India
and abroad on the adverse effects of large dams.
Environmentalists and water resources development
planners have often opposed one another in this
controversy, the former vehemently opposing the
construction of large dams and the latter favouring
them. The criticisms of the environmentalists are
centred mainly on the adverse impacts attributed to
the construction of large dams. It is asserted that
nature is very fragile and developmental activities
which change the existing natural balance are not
advisable, therefore irrigation development should
now concentrate on small dams, ground water
utilization, etc, which have comparatively less
adverse effects.
Before the relative merits and demerits of large
and small dams are discussed, it may be of interest to
consider whether one type of dam could replace the
other totally. Conceding for a moment for the sake
of argument that minor irrigation schemes are better
than major and medium schemes in all respects, the
WATER RESOURCES DEVELOPMENT Volume 5 Number 2 June 1989
Large and small dams: R. Vidyasagar Rao
question would then be whether the irrigation
potential balance of 44.5 mha could be created with
the help of minor irrigation schemes alone. If this is
not possible, then the problem will be to decide how
large an area should be covered by minor irrigation
schemes and how much by major and medium.
Another important aspect that should be considered
is that large dams cannot be built at every location
that might be desired, but a small dam can be
constructed anywhere without much difficulty. A
large dam needs favourable geological, hydrological
and topographical conditions and an adequate
command area. Nature does not bestow favourable
conditions for large dams everywhere. Therefore it
might be necessary to consider the construction of
large dams where such favourable conditions exist,
even though these dams may cause certain adverse
impacts, as long as these impacts are minimal and
acceptable. No development project can be imple-
mented without having some sort of adverse effects.
What should be aimed at is to ameliorate or
minimize the adverse impacts that come in the wake
of the development. However, in cases where the
adverse impacts outweigh the development benefits,
there may be no other recourse than to abandon
such projects, as has happened in some cases in
India, such as the Silent Valley project in Kerala.
The various adverse effects associated with the
construction of large water resources development
works argued by the environmentalists are:
(i) Large dams necessitate massive population
displacement because of flooding to create
reservoirs, which leads to social and econo-
mic distress for the displaced population.
(ii) Large dams submerge valuable forest land,
cultivable land, plantations and important
flora and may lead to the extinction of exotic
species of fauna in some cases.
(iii) Because of the assured supply of water from
large dams in two or even three seasons of
the year, farmers tend to over-irrigate which
leads to waterlogging and an increase in the
salinity of the soil, thus progressively dimi-
nishing the productivity of the land.
(iv) Dams increase the incidence of diseases such
as malaria and schistosomiasis because of an
increase in the population of mosquitoes and
snails.
(v) The trapping of silt by large dams affects the
regime of rivers downstream. A reduction of
flows downstream, especially in the lean
season, may increase the salinity of river
water beyond tolerance limits for down-
stream users.
137
Large and small dams: R. Vidyasagar Rao
(vi) Seismic activity in and around the reservoir
area increases because of the impounded
water. Major landslides in the periphery of
the reservoir can pose a danger to the safety
of the dam and local people.
(vii) Reduced river flow affects migratory fish,
causing a decrease in the desirable fish
population.
(viii) The damage cause to life and property by the
failure of a large dam can be disastrous.
Flood control measures including flood
embankments have not significantly reduced
the incidence of floods or flood damage.
In order to make an objective assessment of the
issue, it would be appropriate to consider the
benefits that can accrue from large dams but not
from small dams.
Benefits from large dams
Reliability of supplies
Large dams provide assured supplies for irrigation,
municipal and industrial requirements. If the dams
are designed to have a carryover capacity, they also
cater for the needs of crops in the following year if
rainfall becomes erratic.
Hydropower
Large dams offer the generation of substantial firm
power because of their large heads and storage
facilities. Though hydropower is conventionally
considered as a peaking power, hydro stations can
be operated as baseload stations where thermal
power is absent, as in the cases of Kerala and
Karnataka states. Hydropower is cheap and uses a
renewable resource - water. The cost of generation
of a unit of energy is about Rs 0.35 in a large storage
dam, while for thermal stations it is Rs 0.5 upwards,
and for stations using diesel fuel the cost may be as
high as Rs 1.50. The capital cost of construction of a
large hydro system is about Rs 10 000/kW while it is
Rs 12 000/kW for thermal stations. Further, the use
of coal as a fuel for power production involves
atmospheric pollution and waste disposal problems.
Nuclear waste disposal has been a serious issue in
many countries where there has been large-scale
development of nuclear power. Small dams cannot
provide the required amount of firm power because
small storage cannot effectively regulate the erratic
nature of river flows for sustained power generation.
Besides, the cost of installing lkW of installed
capacity may be three times higher for a small dam.
138 WATER RESOURCES DEVELOPMENT Volume 5 Number 2 June 1989
Flood control
Large dams offer substantial flood protection to
downstream areas by either temporarily holding
back the flood flows or moderating the inflow peak
value. The regulation offered in large dams by the
storage and operation of gates is absent in small
dams. It is not true to say that flood control and
embankment schemes have not afforded flood
protection and reduced flood damage. The problem,
wherever it exists, should be studied in its entirety:
the river morphology, such as changes in river
course, encroachment on flood plains and de-
velopmental activities in protected areas, changes in
rainfall pattern in the area, etc. Before construction
of the Ukai dam in South Gujarat floods were very
common. During 94 years up to 1970 water levels at
Surat city had risen 19 times above the danger level
of 28.96 m, the maximum level being 31.55 m in
August 1968. Thanks to the Ukai dam the situation
has altogether changed. Surat and downstream areas
are now free from floods. As against 42 480 m3 in
1968, the maximum flood released since completion
of the dam has been only 13 620 m3. It is now
realized that with some flow forecasting techniques
the efficacy of large dams in flood protection can be
increased enormously. Integrated operation of a
river system also enhances the performance of the
system for flood control purposes.
Water management
Large irrigation systems with a network of canals are
more amenable to the introduction of a rotational
supply of water and better water management
policies. Modern communication networks using
VHF can be introduced to monitor releases in main
canals depending on the rainfall in the command
year. Water can be stored between cross-regulators
when not required. High irrigation intensities of the
order of 160% are achievable in large command
areas. With improvements in water management
and adequate drainage provisions it is possible to
counteract the adverse impacts of waterlogging and
salinity. Conjunctive use will keep groundwater
levels in check. Vector control and the spread of
infectious diseases are also manageable.
From the point of view of command area
development activities, large command areas under
a unified irrigation system are preferable. It is easier
for agricultural extension workers to operate in large
commands as farmers can see results and learn from
neighbouring farms or demonstration farms. Simi-
larly the supply of pesticides, herbicides and seeds
can be better regulated. Land consolidation and
rectangularization of holdings may also be possible.

Marketing and communication can be better plan-
ned. All this cannot be expected if irrigated areas are
spread over a number of pockets instead of one
consolidated unit. The concept of a unified agency
for command area development like CADA fits into
a large unit of irrigated area rather than small units.
Water quality
The quality of water in many of our river systems has
deteriorated considerably due to increased urbaniza-
tion and industrialization. The non-monsoon season
flow in many rivers is too meagre to sustain this
pollution load. It is paradoxical that large volumes of
water carry waste to the sea in the monsoon which
could otherwise be put to effective use by means of
storage and release of adequate discharges into
rivers in the non-monsoon period. Large dams can
be designed for specific releases based on water
quality considerations. Power releases at Hirakud
dam have augmented non-monsoon flows in the
Mahanadi with the result that there has been no case
of pollution reported.
Recreation
Recreation areas in and around many large reser-
voirs have made the environment more pleasant,
and have provided facilities for the people. Exam-
ples are Brindavan Gardens (Krishnarajasagar dam
in Karnataka), Malampuzha Gardens (Malampuzha
in Kerala), Sant Gyaneshwar Udyan (Jayakwadi in
Maharashtra) and so on. Reservoir areas provide
economic and pleasant recreational facilities. They
offer facilities for water-skiing, swimming, boating,
fishing, etc. The scope for developing recreation
centres on large reservoirs appears to be greater
than with small reservoirs.
Possible adverse impacts of large and small
dams
There are certain adverse impacts which have been
attributed mostly or even exclusively to large dams
but generally not considered for small dams. These
issues may to some extent be disputable depending
on specific situations, as will be discussed in this
section.
Submergence
A feeling exists among many people that submerg-
ence due to a large reservoir is much worse than
results from a number of small reservoirs created for
the same storage. Unfortunately not much informa-
tion is available on the submergence and cost aspects
of small dams. However, an exercise was under-
taken to compare the cost and submergence aspects
WATER RESOURCES DEVELOPMENT Volume 5 Number 2 June 1989
Large and small dams: R. Vidyasagar Rao
of large dams with that of small dams by considering
the case of Jonk sub-basin in Mahanadi.
In the study, two alternatives were considered.
The first alternative was Girina dam, the major
project with a storage of 603 mm3, and the second
alternative was a substantial reduction of the storage
at Girina dam supplemented by other small storage
dams. It was found that Girina could be reduced to
185 mm3 of storage, and the balance of 418 mm3
would require eight other small storage dams.
However, even a rough estimate of the storage cost
alone showed that the second alternative was 150%
costlier than the first, and also involved 60% more
submergence.
Another example that could be cited in this
context is the Heran dam in Gujarat. This dam could
not be built because of the opposition from the local
population. A preliminary evaluation by the Gov-
ernment of Gujarat of the possibility of reducing the
height of the dam and constructing another small
dam upstream showed that the population affected
and land submerged could be reduced only margin-
ally, but the tribal habitats and forest land affected
increased tremendously.
Information on subergence areas vis-d-vis irri-
gated areas created by small irrigation projects is not
readily available, but based on the information
available for major and medium projects it can be
seen that the submerged area expressed as a
percentage of culturable command area for major
projects generally ranges from 2.87% to 10%,
whereas for medium projects this ratio ranges from
10% to 25%. By analogy it can be deduced that the
percentage of submerged area to irrigated area for
small projects will be much greater than for medium
projects and could be somewhere around 50% to
60%.
Cost aspects
To replace a single large dam irrigating 100 000 ha,
50 small dams each irrigating 2000 ha would be
needed in either the upper or the lower reaches of a
watershed. Such a large number of alternative sites
is rarely available in practice, necessitating a
curtailment in the envisaged development. The
construction of dams in upper reaches involves
problems of transporting skilled labour, machinery,
etc. Further, the submergence may also involve rich
forest land. The construction of dams in lower
reaches involves more submergence of usually
cultivated land per unit of storage due to the flat
nature of the topography.
Advocates of small dams stress that the cost per ha
of potential irrigation of tank projects is much lower
than for large irrigation projects. This is true
139
Large and small dams: R. Vidyasagar Rao
because large dams involve mechanized construc-
tion, the transport of cement and stone over long
distances, construction of communication lines and
housing colonies, design costs, costs of spillways and
so on. In small dams, local unskilled labour is used
with local material to construct embankments.
Further, for a small project the distribution system is
less expensive as the canals would mostly be unlined
and they are constructed with the help of farmers.
The input of labour from farmers is not generally
taken into account when computing the cost. O&M
costs for small dams are in practice also not taken
into consideration. In an economic analysis the cost
per ha is not important but the net present worth of
long-term benefits, the benefit-cost ratio and the
internal rate of return need to be considered.
Evaporation
The annual evaporation depth adopted in India is
1.5-2 m. Large volumes of water will be lost by
evaporation in small reservoirs because of their
relatively shallow depths compared to large reser-
voirs where water depths are quite significant.
Groundwater use
Groundwater development forms the bulk of a
minor irrigation programme and could become a
people's programme implemented through indi-
vidual and non-cooperative efforts with finances
obtained from institutional and other sources. It is
widely believed that groundwater can provide the
farmer with an instant supply of irrigation water and
its use can control waterlogging and salinity. In
reality, though groundwater could perhaps supple-
ment and augment surface water supply it cannot
altogether replace large irrigation systems.
The use of groundwater is dependent on the
availability of cheap power in the form of electricity
or diesel. Groundwater use can involve a lot of
mechanical hardware such as strainers, electric
motors and pumps which need proper maintenance,
and quick repair facilities are a must. The reliability
of power supplies to the agricultural sector has not
been satisfactory in most Indian states. The statistics
show that tubewells in Uttar Pradesh between 1974
and 1980 functioned for only 17.8% of the total
number of hours due to closure on account of
mechanical defects and the non-availability of
power. In many areas groundwater has been
reported to be saline as it has to flow through many
types of geological formations and its continued use
has caused soil salinity. In costal areas groundwater
pumping has sometimes caused sea water intrusion
into the aquifer, rendering the groundwater supply
unfit for any type of use. This has happened in
140 WATER RESOURCES DEVELOPMENT Volume 5 Number 2 June 1989
Madras city and the coastal areas of Sourashtra.
Groundwater flow is intricately related to low flows
in most river systems in the non-monsoon season.
Any large-scale groundwater development will
adversely affect the low flows which are already
much lower than is required in most river systems
from the water quality point of view. Irrigation could
prove to be a boon to groundwater development, as
the recharge from irrigated areas will increase
groundwater levels.
Seismic aspects
Reservoir-induced seismic activity is another debat-
able point since the present level of data and-
knowledge of structural formations deep below the
earth's surface foreclose the adoption of any definite
conclusions. A study of 425 large dams in the world
has shown that only in 15 reservoirs were seismic
forces observed to have gone up after construction
of the reservoir. In 10 out of these 15 cases the
magnitude of the earthquake was less than 5 on the
Richter scale. Seismological observations at Bhakra,
Pong and Ramganga dams have not registered any
increase in seismic activity due to the impounding of
water in such large reservoirs.
Adverse impacts of large dams and their
mitigation
Population displacement
The most important and emotive environmental
issue in India at present is the submergence of land
and consequential population displacement. It is
here that the water resources engineers face a big
dilemma. If the submerged land is populated,
population displacement and the submergence of
agricultural land and dwellings becomes a major
issue. If the area is sparsely populated, then it is
either forest land or some valuable flora that may get
submerged. Though displacement of population to
varying degrees of severity is present in all
development projects, in water resources projects
the effect of submergence is more pronounced
because of the concentration of disruption in one
place.
As regards the displacement of population, the
issue in focus is not the displacement itself but the
implementation of proper rehabilitation measures
and the timely payment of adequate compensation.
The Maharashtra government in its recent Resettle-
ment Act 1976 provided many amenities for oustees,
including reservations of up to 15% of the command
area for resettlement pruposes. Almost all the state
governments in India are aware of this problem and
are taking suitable measures for the protection of the

rights of oustees. A package of rehabilitiation
measures has been drawn up for the Narmadasagar
and Sardarsarovar dams planned on the Harmada in
view of the magnitude of the population affected. It
is not true that water resources planners are
indifferent to the displacement of populations. Some
projects which involved large-scale population dis-
placement, such as the Tikkerpara dam on the
Mahanadi and the Bhopalapatnam dam on the
Indrawati have been deferred on this account.
It cannot be said that small dams do not displace
populations. However, the impact of each small dam
is not felt so severely because the numbers involved
are not so concentrated. A railway line or national
highway running over thousands of miles would also
displace a lot of people but its impact would not be
as great as that of any other project such as a
reservoir or a mine project. A similar comparison
can be made between a number of small dams and
one large dam.
It is argued that large dams cause the submerg-
ence of forest lands. It has been calculated that
water resources projects are responsible for 12% of
the total reduction of forest cover. If the compensa-
tory afforestation which is being conducted in
association with many recent projects is taken into
account, however, this percentage will be less. The
Forest Act of 1980 and the clearance procedures set
out by the Department of Environment of the
Government of India ensure that adequate precau-
tions are taken to safeguard reasonable interests in
this respect.
Waterlogging and soil salinity
Waterlogging and soil salinity are problems to be
reckoned with in many irrigated command areas,
and a number of steps are being taken in mitigation.
Some of the most vital are:
(i) assessment of the water requirements of crops
on a scientific basis based on agrometeoro-
logy;
(ii) introduction of a rotational water supply to
farms;
(iii) provision/re-excavation of main and interme-
diate drains as part of the project construction
activities;
(iv) provision of farm drains as a component of
on-farm development works; and
(v) conjunctive use of groundwater with surface
water to lower the watertable.
Water and land management institutes have been set
up in several states to train officers of the agriculture
and irrigation departments in water management.
Inter alia these institutes offer training in remedial
WATER RESOURCES DEVELOPMENT Volume 5 Number 2 June 1989
Large and small dams: R. Vidyasagar Rao
measures for waterlogging and soil salinity prob-
lems.
Aquaculture
Environmentalists argue that the yield of river fish
has been reduced because of dam construction. No
doubt any barrier across a river, and particularly a
dam, affects the upstream migration of species such
as salmon unless special provisions are made. In
India such provisions are made where required.
Migratory species of fishes of the Solomon type are
almost non-existent in the Indian river system except
in a few snowfed Himalayan rivers. Due to the
reduction in low flows downstream of a dam a
certain reduction in the yield is likely to occur.
However, this is adequately compensated by rearing
fish in the reservoirs created by dams where a
copious water supply is always available. In the Ukai
reservoir an inland freshwater fishery has been
successfully developed.
Effects on downstream areas
There has been a misconception that downstream
existing riparian users of river water are adversely
affected by dam construction. In reality the position
is otherwise. Regulated releases from dams firm up
water supplies for irrigation and municipal uses. The
storage size of a dam is invariably designed to cater
for existing users. The Nagarjunasagar dam in
Andhra Pradesh, for instance, provides for manda-
tory flows through the outlets to take care of the
riparian rights of farmers in the Krishna delta.
Dam breaks
Dam breaks are no doubt disastrous. There have
been failures of dams such as the Tebon dam. In
India there has been no large dam break in recent
times. With more rigorous spillway flood estimation
using a hydrometeorological approach, better
foundation investigations and their implementation
in quality control during construction, the risk of
dam breaks can be minimized to a large extent.
Because of the non-exacting standards required for
the estimation of design floods in their construction,
small dams are more prone to failures, as is evident
from recurring tank breaches in Karnataka and
Sourashtra. The breach or failure of small dams may
not cause loss of life but will damage crops and
habitations and lead to loss of cattle.
Other issues
Large dams trap silt and deprive the lower reaches of
silt in the water. This may affect areas where
inundation irrigation is practised as nutrients in the
silt are absent when the land is flooded. Most parts
141
Large and small dams: R. Vidyasagar Rao
of the country practise only rainfed agriculture
where irrigation provision improves yields and
thereby economic conditions dramatically, as in the
case of the Rajasthan canal project, Ukai, Kakra-
par, Nagarjunasagar, etc. There have been no
reports of adverse consequences from the supply of
silt-free water. Trapped silt no doubt reduces the life
of reservoirs, but no developmental activity has a
limitless life, and will need replacing. A dam is
designed to have a reserve below the dead storage
level for trapping the silt. By proper planning of silt
storage and management of the catchment, the life
of a reservoir can be preserved or extended.
Large dams do require huge capital investments.
The returns do not necessarily start flowing even
after completion of the dams because the distribu-
tion systems may not be ready. Even when the
returns do start flowing they may only be partial.
This problem is not encountered in the case of small
dam where the returns start flowing as soon as the
scheme is put into operation.
Conclusion
The attainment of an ultimate irrigation potential of
113.5 mha in India will involved massive surface
irrigation development. Groundwater and minor
irrigation are supplemental in nature and cannot
142 WATER RESOURCES DEVELOPMENT Volume 5 Number 2 June 1989
form the main thrust of the national irrigation
strategy. It is not a correct approach to view minor
irrigation schemes as an alternative to major and
medium irrigation works. Much of the criticism of
large dams has emanated from environmentalists in
the developed countries where most of the possible
developmental activities in water resources have
already taken place and where there is hardly any
need for additional food because of limited popula-
tion growth. Self-sufficiency in food has been the
thrust of the planning process in all developing
countries and the tempo of this thrust should not be
diluted by overemphasizing adverse environmental
impacts without weighing them against the enor-
mous benefits and potentials.
Modern-day project planning is exacting and
comprehensive; all aspects of the impact on the
environment are considered in detail at the planning
and implementation stages. Most of the adverse
impacts of large-scale water resources development
can be minimized, compensated for or even elimin-
ated. Large and smll schemes both have their roles
to play in furthering the development of water
resources. Therefore the controversy about large v
small dams is not rational and in reality large and
small dams should coexist without any conflict.
Hence the concept should not be large v small but
large and small dams.