GreenWatch Dhaka NewsDesk
The demand recently made by the Indian state of Bihar to decommission the Farakka Barrage on the Ganges was positively scrutinised and some urgent steps were recommended to save Bihar from the recurrent flood problem attributed to the barrage, at a conference at Patna on 25-26 February last.
Organised the Bihar government the ‘Landmark Ganga Conference’ attracted water experts from near and far who thanked the Bihar government under the leadership of Chief Minister Shri Nitish Kumar as it took the leadership for the cause of the Ganga.
The ‘national-international’ conference on ‘ Can we achieve clean Ganga without incessant Ganga?’ was landmark meeting for a number of reasons but most importantly, since a state goivernment was taking the leadership for the cause of River Ganga,’ Indian water expert and coordinator of South Asia Network on Dams, Rivers and People (SANDRP), Himangshu Thakkar, wrote.
Himangshu spoke on the way forward about the Farakka Barrage, a key obstacle in the path of rejuvenated Ganga on which the conference was focussed. Following the conference Himangshu Tahkkar wrote a letter to the Bihar Chief Minister with recommendations which wewre apparently accepted in the final session of the conference.
The letter, dated 02 March Thursday 2017 deals with the whole issue and will refresh water experts, environmentalists, policy and decision makers in Bangladesh. Excerpts:
Firstly, I would like to thank you and Water Resources Department of Bihar for inviting me to the Patna Conference on Incessant Ganga on Feb 25-26, 2017. This shows great vision and foresight on your behalf, to raise such crucial issues that is not only necessary for the Ganga, people of Bihar, environment of Bihar and future of Bihar, but also for the whole nation. We hope you will continue to lead the nation on this issue, and I am sure you will get huge support, including from me.
WHY AN URGENT REVIEW OF FARAKKA BARRAGE IS JUSTIFIED AND NECESSARY:
Its already 42 years since the FB was commissioned, it is high time that an assessment and review is done.
The state of the river and the basin has changed since the FB was proposed, designed and constructed.
The changing climate is bound to change the hydrology and sediment flow in the river, making such a review even more important.
The declared objective of Govt of India to achieve rejuvenated Ganga with nirmal and aviral flow also requires such an assessment of FB.
Bihar government can in any case, considering the constitution situation of water and rivers in India, demand and institute such an assessment in the interest of people, agriculture, environment, rivers and future of Bihar.
BIHAR GOVERNMENT NEEDS TO START THESE STUDIES IMMEDIATELY: As I had suggested at the second day of the conference in pre lunch session, I think the following steps need to be taken up on Urgent basis by Bihar Government:
Assess the impact of FB (Farakka Barrage) through a multidisciplinary team including geo-morphologist, hydrologist, environmentalist, social scientist among others, the impact of the Farakka barrage upstream, downstream, on Bihar, Jharkhand, UP, W Bengal, Bangladesh, involving an open process inviting inputs from all concerned including central agencies, concerned state government and state agencies and general public, experts, civil society, etc. The impact should be consider all kinds of costs, benefits and impacts in all kind of places. It can also take into account the changing climate. This is for assessing in a transparent manner, if there is a case for decommissioning of Farakka barrage.
If the above assessment makes out a case for decommissioning of FB, than another assessment needs to be done in similarly transparent manner about the costs, benefits and impacts of decommissioning of FB, for all kinds of impacts and all kinds of places. What happens to the accumulated sediment behind the FB need to be looked into by this assessment.
May be as a part of the first assessment above or separately, assess the current contribution of Farakka to KPT, navigation along Hugli, to all those benefiting from the water supplied through the feeder canal. This assessment can also see what options are available for ensuring continued benefits that are possible now due to FB, even if FB is decommissioned. This assessment can also look into the issue of viability of navigation along the feeder channel/ Ganga and also viability of KPT as a river port.
WHAT NEEDS TO BE DONE IMMEDIATELY: In the meantime, following steps needs to be taken immediately:
Open up gates and under sluices of FB during monsoon, this will substantially ease the flood impact in Bihar due to FB.
This needs to start immediately in next monsoon, that is in 2017 monsoon.
GoB needs to demand from centre that preparations should start for this on war footing immediately.
GoB needs to have a role in the operation of FB on day to day basis immediately. GoB needs to write to Centre about this since FB is operated by FB Authority, a MoWR organisation of GOI.
People across Bihar need to be mobilised for this immediately for actions related to FB.
This being the centanary year of Champaran Satyagrah as mentioned by you, this is possibly a very good time to launch “FARAKKA KHOL DO, Bihar ko badh vibhidika se bachao” movement in which people across needs to be mobilised.
All this was part of my presentation at the Patna conference, your officers have a copy of it. I hope you would take necessary steps to urgently take up these actions.
I would be happy if I can be of any assistance to Bihar in this regard. I hope the WRD of Bihar would keep us updated about the steps taken in this regard.
In the meantime, I had requested them to send me all the official correspondence that Bihar govt may have had with the Centre and Central govt agencies on the issue of Farakka barrage possibly since the first letter that former Chief Secretary wrote about twelve years ago. I would request the friends in WRD to share a copy of the same.
Himanshu Thakkar (ht.sandrp@gmail.com), for SANDRP
https://sandrp.wordpress.com/2017/03/03/landmark-ganga-conference-in-patna-what-bihar-needs-to-urgently-do/
