VIJAYAWADA: The state Water Resources Department, which has focused on tapping surplus floodwater, is preparing proposals to utilise Godavari floodwater, over 3,000 TMC of which goes into the sea annually. The project has been tentatively named AP State Water Security Development Projects (APSWDP), under which three projects have been proposed, including enhancement of the carrying capacity of the Polavaram Irrigation Project’s Right Main Canal (RMC) and a lift scheme.
Between June 1 and September 4, a surplus of 2,244.064 TMC of water was let into the sea. The cumulative utilisation at Sir Arthur Cotton Barrage in Dowleswaram stood at a mere 70.88 TMC. In the last water year — June 1, 2019, to May 31, 2020 — 3,797.46 TMC of surplus water went into the Bay of Bengal. The total utilisation in the same period was just 254.08 TMC. The situation is similar every year, as per statistics available with the Water Resources Department.
Even with the Polavaram Irrigation Project, which is expected to be ready by the end of next year, and will have a gross storage capacity of 194 TMC (at +45.72 metres) and can divert more water to north coastal Andhra and Krishna basin, it will only be around 322 TMC, including the share to other states.
This is only about 10 per cent of the surplus let into the sea. Hence, the department has proposed the APSWDP with a multi-pronged strategy to not only tap Godavari floodwater, but also ensure water security to the state by diverting it to other basins.
Sources told TNIE that the APSWDP, one of the state’s five major new projects, comprises three projects: Widening of twin tunnels of PIP connecting the RMC, enhancement of RMC’s carrying capacity from 17,500 cusecs to 50,000 cusecs, and a lift to draw 2 TMC of water below the minimum drawdown level (MDDL).
“Proposals are being prepared to utilise Godavari floodwater and divert it to other basins. One of the projects is enhancement of PIP RMC’s discharge capacity by almost three times. There is another proposal to create a parallel canal to the PIP RMC. This is still in the proposal stage, and the government will take a call based on the economic feasibility,” a senior official explained. Though both widening the existing canal and creating a parallel canal need land acquisition, the former seems to require less land procurement, another official said.
Preliminary estimates pegged the cost of APSWDP at Rs 12,702 crore, of which the enhancement of the RMC is estimated to cost Rs 11,375 crore. The lift is estimated to cost around Rs 600 crore and widening of PIP’s twin tunnels may cost Rs 727 crore.
Enhancement of PIP RMC was one of the proposals that had come up for discussion in the meetings of the expert committee, formed by Andhra Pradesh and Telangana with an objective to jointly take up interlinking of Krishna and Godavari basins to share and utilise surplus Godavari water. Though a few meetings were held, and the two chief ministers discussed the proposals, it has not materialised.
A retired irrigation engineer, who is a part of the committee that discussed the joint project proposed by both the states, said enhancement of RMC would also help in interlinking of Krishna and Godavari basins.
“If the RMC’s capacity is enhanced or a parallel canal is created, at least 3-4 TMC of water can be diverted to Krishna basin per day during the flooding season. After meeting the Krishna delta’s requirement, the water could further be lifted to Nagarjuna Sagar. A few proposals were already discussed. So, if they materialise, interlinking of the basins can also be achieved,” the retired chief engineer noted.
While a final call would be taken by the state government on APSWDP after the proposals are ready, the Water Resources Department has decided to form a special purpose vehicle for raising funds for it. A yearly fund requirement projection has also been made for four years from 2020-21.