BENGALURU: With the state government unable to implement the Kalasa-Banduri project for last 10 years and the issue further getting embroiled in litigation, an alternate project has been proposed by a hydro-electric expert and former executive director of Karnataka Power Corporation Ltd.
B Lakshman Rao says the best way to solve this problem is by drawing 7.5 tmcft of water from the Supa Dam and not look towards Goa and Maharashtra to resolve the drinking water problem in the state.
The alternative project proposed by him neither involves destruction of pristine Western Ghat forests nor will it result in any inter-state dispute with neighbours, he claims.
Since the distance between Supa Dam and Malaprabha river is less than 60 km, there won’t be much impact on the environment nor will it involve clearance of green cover. The Kalasa-Banduri project has been stalled for this reason with Goa raising objections, he says.
Rao adds, “The KPCL has constructed the Supa Dam on the Kali river with a holding capacity of 145 tmcft to generate 900MW of hydroelectric power. Presently, there are six generators installed at Nagjhari Power House with each generating 150MW. Further, two more generators of 50MW capacity each are installed near the dam.”
Outlining the details of his proposal, Rao says that to solve the drinking water needs of the parched districts of Belagavi, Gadag and Dharwad, 7.5 tmcft can be lifted from upstream of Supa Dam and the same quantity discharged to the Malaprabha river near Khanapur or Banduri canal near Londa. This water can be pumped from upstream of the Supa Dam catchment area through a pipeline, a canal or a tunnel and the distance will only be 20km.