PALAKKAD: The mentioning of the removal of silt from the Malampuzha dam in the state Budget on Friday, which could net the Government a sum of Rs 300 crore if undertaken, would turn out to be the first pilot project of its kind in the country.
Usually in the West, dams are abandoned after silt accumulates beyond a point. But this will be the first time that the silt is being removed from a dam in the country. Though studies have been conducted for the removal of silt from dams in Karnataka and Tamil Nadu, till date no concrete action has followed. Water Resources Department sources in Malampuzha told Express that the global Expression of Interest (EOI) will be invited by the department in the current financial year itself. Already a few companies from the Gulf which possess the technical expertise to separate sand from sea water have made enquiries in this regard.
As per the studies conducted by the Kerala Engineering Research Institute (KERI), Peechi, it is estimated that there is 17 million cubic metres of silt in the Malampuzha dam of which Rs 8.5 million cubic metres is river sand which could be used for construction. The river sand deposits is estimated to be worth around Rs 840 crore. It has also found that the storage area of the dam was fast diminishing due to the accumulation of silt over the years.
As announced by Finance Minister Thomas Isaac, the government proposes to net Rs 300 crore while the remaining amount of Rs 840 crore would go to meet expenses like dredging.
The bidder who expresses interest will have to deposit 25 percent of Rs 300 crore with the government before starting the work. The company would be given two years time to complete the work.
The trickiest part of the whole exercise is the fact that the Malampuzha dam is the source of drinking water to the residents of the Palakkad Municipality and the adjoining six panchayats.
Therefore, while removing the silt care should be taken to see that the water body is not polluted.
The dam also meets the irrigation water needs of the paddy farmers in a vast area of the district.
Two high level meetings had been convened in Thiruvananthapuram by Water Resources Minister N K Premachandran with department officials to discuss the modalities of inviting the Expression of Interest (EOI). A high power committee has also been constituted in this connection.
The Centre for Earth and Science Studies (CESS), Thiruvananthapuram, has been commissioned to assess the environment impact of the removal of silt from the dam.