INTERLINKING OF INDIAN

RIVERS

Contents
Introduction
Historical perspective
Importance and scope
Project overview
Aspects
Cost and funding
Arguments against interlinking
Case study
Advantages and disadvantages
Conclusion
Reference

Introduction
The availability of water is highly uneven in
India. Some parts of the country receive much
more than the normal rainfall, leading to heavy
floods whereas some are suffering from severe
drought.
TheInter-linking of Indian Riversis a
proposed large-scale civil engineering project
that aims to join the majority ofIndia's rivers
by canals and so reduce persistent water
shortages in parts of India.

HISTORY OF INTERLINKING
1972-Ganga kaveri link proposed by Dr.

K.L.Rao .

1974-Garland canal proposal by D.J

Dastur .

1980-Ministry of water resources frames

the National perspective plan(NPP) .

1982-The National water development

agency (NWDA) set up to carry out

surveys of the links & pre feasibility
studies.

1987- The National Water Policy(NWP)

was introduced which clearly stated that

its prime objective was to Inter-link
National Rivers.

1999-A National commission (NCIWRDP)

set up to review NWDA reports .

Aug 15, 2002- President Abdul Kalam

mentions the need for river linking in

his independence day speech .

Oct 2002- Supreme court recommends

that the government formulate a plan

to link the major Indian rivers by the
year 2012.

Dec 2002- Govt. appointed a task force

on interlinking of 37 rivers led by Mr.

Suresh Prabhu. The deadline was
revised to 2016.

Importance and Scope

Avoiding droughts
Floods and their control
Water for irrigation
Water for domestic and for other purposes
Water for industries
Power Generation
Navigation
Increase in water table

PROJECT OVERVIEW

Proposed Inter Basin Water Transfer Links

Two components
Himalayan Rivers Component
Peninsular Rivers Components

Himalayan Component

Peninsular Component

Major Rivers of India

Map after interlinking of

rivers

Aspects
Massive funds
Proper planning
Environmental & geological conditions
Social implications
Proper water distribution
Talks with neighboring countries
Most important is time limitations

Main Features
30 River Links
Involving 37 Rivers
Additional water=300 BCM
No of reservoirs: 60
Estimated cost: Rs 5,60,000 cr
Estimated displacement of population
0.45 M (official document)

Estimated Submergence
16,75,000 ha (6,25,000 ha for canals &
10,50,000 ha for rivers).

Costs And Funding

The overall cost of this project as estimated

till 2002 is up to Rs 5,60,000 crores. The
Funding for the project will be through:Grants
Loans
Tax
Users charge on water, electricity, navigation
etc.

Arguments against interlinking of

rivers
Land acquisition.
Financing
Flood period
Desertification
River pollution
Security
Legal angles & election tangles

Technical Issues
Drinking water supply to towns & villages

enroute
Water allocation for irrigation
Command area development
Hydropower development
Navigation

Environmental Issues
Land submergence
Forest cover
Ecology
Water logging & soil salinity
Socio-Economic issues
Land acquisition & rehabilitation

Jalgaon River Linking

Project
The jalgaon a district of Maharastra had
received less than average rainfall. There was
no runoff water in rivers & nalas;
consequently, all water reservoirs were empty
& depleting.
While in the neighboring Nasik district, the
Girna dam was overflowing. So this excess
water from the Girna dam, which was going
waste had the potential to be diverted to
water scarce regions of Jalgaon.

Objectives of River
Linking
Divert the water in arid & semi-arid parts.
Increase the efficiency of different water

storage structures.
Conserve the water by taking through canals
ducts, drains, nalahs etc.
Indentify the inter-relationships of recharge
areas with geology, geomorphology, soils &
structure of area.

Detect land use changes & correlate them

with changes in the area of connectivity over

the years.
Carry out qualitative & quantitative
assesment of water resource
Suggest suitable sites & methods for artificial
recharge to augment ground water recharge.

Benefits
Irrigation to 160 million hectares.
Additional food grains output of 250 million tones

per annum.
Hydroelectric power of 34 million KW.
Flood control.
Domestic & industrial water supply to all states.
Inland navigation.
Fishery development.
Tourism & water sports.
Employment of large rural population.

Disadvantages
No inclusion of peoples participation.
Lack of consensus among citizens.
Criss-cross construction of dams & canal

systems, which will cause displacement of

people.
Submergence of land, forest & reserves.
Negative impact on flora & fauna.
Acquisition of large tracts of land.

STATUS OF WATER TRANSFER LINKS IDENTIFIED FOR

PREPARATION OF FEASIBILITY REPORTS (FR) BY NWDA

HimalayanRivers Development
Component
1.Kosi-Mechi link- Entirely

lies inNepal
2.Kosi-Ghaghra link- S&I
works taken up
3.Gandak-Ganga link- S&I
works completed
4.Ghaghra-Yamuna link- FR
completed
5.Sarda-Yamuna link- FR
completed
6.Yamuna-Rajasthan link- S&I
works completed
7.Rajasthan-Sabarmati link- S&I
works completed
8.Chunar(atGanga)-Sone Barrage link- S&I
works completed
9.Sone Dam - Southern Tributaries of Ganga link- S&I
works taken up
10.Manas-Sankosh-Tista-Ganga (M-S-T-G) link
- S&I works
taken up

PeninsularRiversDevelopment Component

1.Mahanadi (Manibhadra) -Godavari(Dowlaiswaram) link- FR

completed
2.Godavari (Polavaram) - Krishna (Vijayawada) link *-FR
completed
3.Godavari (Inchampalli) - Krishna ( Pulichintala)link- FR
completed
4.Godavari (Inchampalli ) - Krishna (Nagarjunasagar) link- FR
completed
5.Krishna(Nagarjunasagar) - Pennar (Somasila ) link- FR
completed
6.Krishna(Srisailam) - Pennarlink- FR
completed
7.Krishna(Almatti) - Pennar link- FR
completed
8.Pennar (Somasila) - Cauvery (Grand Anicut) link- FR
completed
9.Cauvery (Kattalai) Vaigai Gundar link- FR
completed
10.Parbati Kalisindh Chambal link*- FR
completed

Budgetary Provision
The budgetary provision forpreparation
ofFeasibility Reports (FRs) and Detailed
Project Report (DPR) forthe present financial
year 2012-13 is Rs. 51.30 crore. The amount
spent on FR & DPR of Interlinking of Rivers
programme from inception of NWDA till
October, 2012 is 378.96 crore.

Conclusion
As water being one of the most important
resources for overall development of nation, it
is therefore necessary to undertake a number of
engineering projects to store water of rivers at
suitably located positions & transfer it to other
places to satisfy the needs in all parts of the
country.

References
Jayantha Bandyopudhyay & Shama Praveen,

The interlinking of rivers, occasional paper

no-60, 17th june 2003.
Vasant A Sirur, Interlinking of Major river in
India, published in Vijay Times 27th April
2003.
Dr S.A Patil, Interlinking of Rivers paper
presented at Institution of Engineer Dharwad
local Center.
Ramaswamy R Iyer, Linking rivers : vision or
mirage? Frontline Vol. 19 Issue 25 Dec 7-

Thank you