{"id":56784,"date":"2025-10-14T21:18:00","date_gmt":"2025-10-14T15:48:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/?p=56784"},"modified":"2025-10-15T12:57:11","modified_gmt":"2025-10-15T07:27:11","slug":"strengthening-safeguarding-dams-india","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/current-affairs\/14-10-2025\/strengthening-safeguarding-dams-india","title":{"rendered":"Strengthening and Safeguarding Dams in India"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><strong>Syllabus: GS3\/Infrastructure; Disaster Management<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Context<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Recently, the Supreme Court of India issued notices to various stakeholders calling for urgent directions to reinforce the aging structure of the 130-year-old Mullaperiyar dam.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-table\"><table class=\"has-background\" style=\"background-color:#ebecf0\"><tbody><tr><td><strong>Mullaperiyar Dam<\/strong><br>&#8211; It is a gravity dam <strong>built on the Periyar River in the Idukki district of Kerala<\/strong> that was constructed between 1887 and 1895.<br>&#8211; The dam is <strong>operated and maintained by Tamil Nadu,<\/strong> under a 999-year lease agreement signed in 1886 between the <strong>Maharaja of Travancore and the British government<\/strong>.<br>&#8211; It diverts water to the <strong>Vaigai basin in Tamil Nadu<\/strong> for irrigation across 68,558 hectares.<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>India\u2019s Dam Landscape<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>According to the<strong> National Register of Large Dams (NRLD)<\/strong> maintained by the <strong>Central Water Commission (CWC), <\/strong>India <strong>ranks third globally <\/strong>\u2014 <strong><em>after China and the United States <\/em><\/strong>\u2014 in the number of large dams, with over 6,000 operational dams and hundreds more under construction.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>These dams serve critical functions in <strong>irrigation <\/strong>(supporting agriculture across vast regions); <strong>hydropower generation; flood control; and drinking water supply<\/strong>.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>There are <strong>concrete gravity dams<\/strong> (e.g., Bhakra Dam), <strong>earthen dams<\/strong> (e.g., Banasura Sagar Dam), <strong>rock-fill dams<\/strong>, and<strong> arch dams<\/strong> (rare in India), based on topography, geology, and hydrological needs.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Why Dam Safety Is Urgent?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Aging Infrastructure:<\/strong> Nearly 80% of these dams are over 25 years old, over 1,000 dams are between 50\u2013100 years old, and more than 230 are over a century old.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Many were built using outdated engineering standards and are now vulnerable to structural fatigue, sedimentation, and climate-induced stress.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>It poses serious risks to lives, property, and ecosystems, especially in the face of climate change and extreme weather events.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Inconsistent Safety Practices:<\/strong> Dam safety protocols vary across states and agencies, leading to gaps in surveillance, inspection, and maintenance.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>The Central Government has been working to unify these practices through the <strong>Dam Safety Act, 2021,<\/strong> and the creation of the <strong>National Dam Safety Authority (NDSA).<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Risk of Catastrophic Failure:<\/strong> Events like dam collapse due to a <strong>glacial lake outburst flood (GLOF)<\/strong> underscore the urgency of robust safety protocols.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>The Supreme Court has repeatedly flagged concerns over dams like Mullaperiyar, warning that a breach could endanger lakhs of lives.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Legal and Institutional Framework<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/current-affairs\/09-01-2025\/dam-safety-act-2021\"><strong>Dam Safety Act, 2021<\/strong><\/a><strong>:<\/strong> Enacted to ensure surveillance, inspection, operation, and maintenance of dams. It mandates:\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Hazard classification of dams;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Emergency action plans;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Periodic safety reviews by independent panels;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>It mandates the formation of <strong>State Committees and National Authority<\/strong> to oversee dam safety.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>National Dam Safety Authority (NDSA):<\/strong> It coordinates dam safety efforts across states.\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>It maintains the <strong>National Register of Large Dams and<\/strong> promotes capacity building, technical standards, and public awareness.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>State-Level Implementation:<\/strong> States have formed Dam Safety Review Panels and conducted pre- and post-monsoon inspections of thousands of dams.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Dam Rehabilitation and Improvement Project (DRIP):<\/strong> It was launched by the CWC <strong>with World Bank support<\/strong>. It focuses on rehabilitation of aging dams; improved safety monitoring; and capacity building for dam operators and engineers;\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>DRIP Phase II &amp; III<\/strong> are currently underway, covering over 700 dams across 19 states.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Digital Monitoring and Reservoir Management:<\/strong> The Dam Safety Organisation of CWC has launched:\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Web-based Reservoir Storage Monitoring System;<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>FloodWatch India App for real-time flood alerts and reservoir data.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Strengthening Measures<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Retrofitting and Rehabilitation<\/strong>: Prioritize structural upgrades for high-risk dams.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Use AI &amp; Analytics:<\/strong> Use sensors and real-time data systems to track dam health.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Climate Resilience:<\/strong> Update safety norms to account for changing hydrological patterns.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Public Awareness and Transparency:<\/strong> Publish safety audits and emergency plans for public scrutiny.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thehindu.com\/news\/national\/supreme-court-notice-to-centre-kerala-tn-ndma-on-plea-for-new-dam-to-replace-mullaperiyar\/article70157616.ece\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Source: TH<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p><strong>Context<\/strong><\/p>\n<li class=\"ms-5\">Recently, the Supreme Court of India issued notices to various stakeholders calling for urgent directions to reinforce the aging structure of the 130-year-old Mullaperiyar dam.<\/li>\n<p><\/p>\n<p><strong>Mullaperiyar Dam<br \/>\n<\/strong><\/p>\n<li class=\"ms-5\">It is a gravity dam built on the Periyar River in the Idukki district of Kerala that was constructed between 1887 and 1895.\n<\/li>\n<li class=\"ms-5\">The dam is operated and maintained by Tamil Nadu, under a 999-year lease agreement signed in 1886 between the Maharaja of Travancore and the British government.\n<\/li>\n<li class=\"ms-5\">It diverts water to the Vaigai basin in Tamil Nadu for irrigation across 68,558 hectares.<\/li>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/current-affairs\/14-10-2025\/strengthening-safeguarding-dams-india\" class=\"btn btn-primary btn-sm float-end\">Read\u00a0More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":15,"featured_media":56795,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[21],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-56784","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-current-affairs"],"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/wp-images.nextias.com\/cdn-cgi\/image\/format=auto\/ca\/uploads\/2025\/10\/strengthening-safeguarding-dams-india.png","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/56784","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/15"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=56784"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/56784\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":56808,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/56784\/revisions\/56808"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/56795"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=56784"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=56784"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nextias.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=56784"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}