The crisis of Mahanadi is deepening very much in Odisha as the Government of Chhattisgarh is constructing a number of dams in the major catchment areas of the river unfazed by the fate of the river downstream and also the hue and cry raised over it.

The total length of the Mahanadi river right from source of the river up to river mouth is nearly 960 km. The major length of the river comes within the State of Odisha. Approximately, one- third length of the river comes within Chhattisgarh and two- third within Odisha. Its source of origin is the Amar Kantak hills, which is a portion of the Eastern-Ghat Hill range.

The 12 tributaries of the river formed within the catchment areas of the Amarkantak hill forests of Chhattisgarh are arrested at several points and nearly 200 small- to-big dams have been constructed for diverting water for industrial benefits.

Hence, these ventures are mindlessly pursued without taking into account the prime requirements of the river water such as drinking water, agriculture and survival of bio-diversities of the region. Such efforts of Chhattisgarh State Government are going to pose a grave ecological threat.

The Government of India is very much aware of such activities of the Chhattisgarh Government. The State Government of Odisha and its people are repeatedly approaching the Central Government on the hypocritical attitude of Chhattisgarh, but the Centre has turned a deaf ear to all this for vested political interest.

A river always loses its identity without water. It is most sad that, even after 72 years of independence, India has not followed a uniform river water sharing policy.

Most of the rivers are inter-State rivers and the States having the sources of rivers are demanding a major share of the water without caring for political or democratic solutions. The river water is hijacked denying the rightful share of water to one part at the cost of the other.

Now to meet the situation, the State Government of Odisha has planned to erect seven barrages in vulnerable points of the Mahanadi river and 22 Annicuts in different important sites of distributaries of the river for storing water.

The surplus water of rainy days in river, usually which flows down to the Bay of Bengal, can be arrested, for various useful purposes, including domestic uses of the same. Pisiculture of the State can be carried out in a big way and provide employments to the un-employed. But the navigation of the river cannot be possible as efficiency of stream flow will drastically be cut down by erection of several dams in the routes.

The river linking project has some grand objectives. It was made to link the rivers of north with the rivers of the south. The BJP Government of AB Vajpayee was pursuing the project with great urgency. But, it is an irony that, the Government of same political party is mum when there is a clear attempt to monopolise the river water of the Mahanadi by one State to the detriment of another.

The writer is a man of Mahandai basin and he knows how the water of Mahanadi and its fertile basin is useful for the sustainable living of the people of the localities, and how the entire eco-culture of the area depends on the river water. The potentiality of the river is always judged not only from its total length, but from the areas it traverses and its tributaries and distributaries.

Artificial water conservation measures can be done successfully, if small dams and barrages are made at frequent intervals on the tributaries and distributaries. The Government of Odisha has given this task to IIT, Roorki for pre partition of their master plans. The big dams have lot of disadvantages.

They require extensive land for creation of reservoirs and construction of their infrastructure. Submergence and displacement is another problem. This also stokes discontentment.

As per sources, the new barrages are to be constructed at Deogan, Kapasira, Khairmal, Godenswar, Manibhadra, Subalay and Mundali. These areas are highly populated areas and these projects will be of medium sizes and be limited to 2,000 hectares. All these project sites mostly come within forest areas. So public opinion is most important for final establishment of these projects.

The writer worked during the execution of the Salandi Irrigation Project for a year. The project was constructed at Hadagarh in Keojhar district. The writer knows the problems of land acquisition, displacement and rehabilitation and resettlement of the people that comes with every dam projects.

The establishment of Annicuts and small dams are less expensive and more fruitful for storage of water and irrigation. The tributaries are always present on the catchment and watershed areas of upstream locations of the river from where the rain water is collected into the mainstream through tributaries and sub-tributaries, etc. It is unfortunate that the State Government so far does not know what is the total length of our tributaries and distributaries of different rivers criss-crossing the State.

The tributaries and the sub-tributaries of the Mahanadi like Ib, Ang, Tel, Jira, Bagh, Salki, Kuairia, Hariharjor, Sagada, Ret, Hati, Indra, Suktel, Remal, Udanti and Sapna are selected for construction of barrages for storing of water. This is good no doubt for proper management of hill streams. But this should have been done much earlier.

So, the catchment areas and watershed areas of all these hill streams should be well protected from soil erosions. In the current year, the Tel river has turned a dry tributary of the Mahanadi due to mismanagement of its catchment areas. It comes from Thermal Rampur hills of Eastern Ghat and has several sub-tributaries. The Tel is a principal tributary of the Mahanadi, which comes in Kalahandi district.

Kalahandi is a non irrigated land mass. The district is having several hill streams, with Tel river but not even an inch of land is under irrigation after 724 years of our independence. So, proper water management planning for the entire State should be carried out to meet the drinking water and irrigation need of the people of the State.

Similarly, several distributaries and sub-distributaries have originated from the Mahanadi within delta lands of coastal plans. Out of 21 small- to- big distributaries and sub distributaries in the coastal plain, 14 are now selected for construction of Annicuts with check-dams for retaining of water. Such rivulets are Katha, Biluakhai, Devi, Kandala, Chitraptola, Luna, Karandia, Paika and Badagenguti.

The river beds of all these small rivers are now silted up due to severe erosions in the upstream side of the Mahanadi. The issue needs to be reviewed and appropriate corrective measures should be taken.

The State Government is of the view is that, we annually only use 48 per cent of the river water and 52 per cent flows down to the sea, which should be tapped. But, we should learn from the Himalayan nations how they harvest rain water through streams and apply the same in Odisha.

(The writer is a former forest officer and environmentalist. Email: nadiya.kanungo@gmail.com, M-9937460649)

Small dams over M’nadi in Odisha to be beneficial