Water resources ministry panel approves ₹6,947cr Renuka dam project

The technical advisory committee of ministry of water resources, river development and Ganga rejuvenation, has approved the proposal for ₹6,946.99 crore Renuka dam project.

The communication to this affect was received on Friday, informed a spokesperson of the Himachal Pradesh Power Corporation Limited (HPPCL), the executing agency.

The proposal will be further processed for investment clearance by ministry of Jal Shakti and will be finally submitted for approval before the cabinet committee on economic affairs (CCEA).

“This will pave the way for the release of ₹577.62 crore to the state Compensatory Afforestation Fund Management and Planning Authority (CAMPA) and subsequently stage –II forest clearance,” said the spokesperson.

The project envisages construction of 148-meter high rock fill dam on river Giri at Dadahu in Sirmaur district and a powerhouse at toe of the dam.

The project will have a capacity of 0.498 billion cubic metre of live water storage in its reservoir and a firm water supply to the tune of 23 cumecs to Delhi.

An agreement for the Renuka dam project was signed in Delhi between six states—Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Delhi, Rajasthan and Uttarakhand—in January.

The cost of the project was revised from ₹4,596.76 crore to ₹6,946.99 crore in March 2015.

The project will generate 40megawatt power during the peak flow. Total submergence area of the project is about 1,508 hectares. After construction of the dam, the flow of Giri will increase around 110 per cent, which will meet drinking needs of Delhi during the lean seasons.

Initial works on the project began in 1976 but its construction could not begin due to various reasons. Central government will bear 90 % cost of irrigation and drinking water component while rest will be borne by beneficiary states.

The shares of Haryana, Uttar Pradesh/Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Rajasthan and Delhi are 47.82%, 33.65 %, 3.15 %, 9.34 % and 6.04% respectively.

The Delhi government has also agreed to fund 90 per cent of the cost of power component of the project. An amount of ₹446.96 crore released by Union government for land acquisition for the project has been distributed among the affected families by HPPCL.