KALABURAGI: The Karnataka Government has sent a proposal to the Centre requesting to issue notification for increasing the height of the Alamatti dam from the existing 519m to 524m. Water Resource Minister Ramesh Jarkiholi on Thursday said they hope that the notification will be issued soon.
Speaking to the media after inspecting the Sonna barrage in Afzalpur taluk, Jarkiholi said that though the Supreme Court had given its assent to increase the height of the dam to 524m, a Central notification would enable the commencement of work.
Chief Engineer of Almatti dam R P Kulkarni told TNIE over phone that though the Supreme Court had given consent, the State Government has to submit a detailed project report for increasing the height of the dam and to request for issuing notification. “The government has done both,” he said. “After increasing the height of the dam, we would get storage of 100tmcft more and the storage capacity in the dam would increase to 223.08tmcft,” he said. “Twenty villages will submerge in the process. For land acquisition we need Rs 32,000 crore and the total estimated cost is Rs 61,000 crore. This is what we have detailed to the Union Government,” he said.
On the Mahadayi river project, Kulkarni said the State Government had sent a detailed project report.
The minister said that he would personally meet the Union Water Resource Minister and the Prime Minister shortly to request them for giving approval for the project.Though he had assumed charge of the Water Resource Ministry on February 6, he said he could not visit the irrigation projects of the State then. Now, he has started to tour districts to get information about the status of the projects, he said.
Jarkiholi said that he would hold a meeting with the Maharashtra Chief Minister and the Water Resource Minister of that State next week to discuss the inter-state water dispute. The date is yet to be finalised, he said.Chief Engineer of Kalaburagi Irrigation Zone Ranganath Naik briefed the minister about the inflow and outflow and the water storage capacity of Sonna barrage.