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The statue of former Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru at the Bhakra village in Himachal Pradesh is like many others across the country, but with a towering dam as the backdrop, it is symbolic of an era of nation building. Here, the nostalgia surrounding Nehru drowns the cynicism against politicians and state-run institutions.
Entry to the vicinity of the Bhakra dam requires a pass from the Nangal office in Punjab's Ropar district. After five in the evening, only villagers with valid permits can go past the check post set up by the Bilaspur police, just after entering Himachal Pradesh.
About 11 km uphill, at the gate of the dam, there is a small museum. Entering the dam premises requires a special pass; also, visitors have to be accompanied by a Bhakra Beas Management Board (BBMB) official. Earlier, even vehicles were allowed to cross the dam, but security was tightened here in the late 80s. In 1988, BBMB had opened the dam's sluice gates, causing floods in some areas in Punjab. To avenge the flooding, Khalistan terrorists killed major-general B N Kumar, then BBMB chairman, in Chandigarh.
In common parlance, too, the potential of reservoir-based dams, which aren't in vogue anymore, is often judged by the extent of flooding they can cause if they give way. With a reservoir capacity of 9,621 million cubic metres, Bhakra has the potential of flooding up to Delhi.
The dam, the highest concrete gravity one in Asia, has created the Gobind Sagar Lake. "Hydropower plants are designed for 30 years; dams are planned for longer. Bhakra has already lived this duration, but based on silt deposition, the reservoir (lake) has more than 300 years," says A B Agarwal, BBMB chairman.
A senior Central Water Commission official says for 137 large dams in India, commissioning dates aren't available. Still, dam failures are rare; the last such incident happened in 1979, when the Macchu dam in Gujarat gave way. "Norms in India are on a par with those laid down by International Commission of Large Dams, a non-governmental organisation of more than 90 countries. Dams are maintained in perpetuity and made available always," he says.
From atop Bhakra, an Otis lift dating back to 1961, with a capacity to carry 53 people, takes 58 seconds to descend 475 ft. There are five km of galleries inside the dam, with channels carrying seepage water. This is crucial to keep the concrete structure in good condition. On the right bank are five Russian-made turbines that were upgraded recently. On the left, Hitachi upgraded two machines, while another three are being upgraded. Together, these can generate 1,343 Mw power.
Besides the Bhakra dam and its two power houses, BBMB also regulates the Nangal Hydel channel, its two power houses, irrigation and flood control along the Sutlej, and the waters of the Rabi and Beas rivers. The most recent of the dams BBMB operates is Pong in Himachal Pradesh, which is 30 years old. Agarwal says last year, plant availability of all the six power stations managed by BBMB was 95.6 per cent, adding their performance is comparable to any recent hydro power project.
The Bhakra Nangal and Beas projects irrigate 5.5 million hectares. But in his book Unravelling Bhakra, Sripad Dharmadikari has questioned the benefits accruing from the dam. "While there is little doubt that irrigation from Bhakra contributed to bringing new areas under cultivation, this was limited to a few parts of the two (Haryana and Punjab) states. Overall, in these years (1953-54 to 1958-59), for the whole unified Punjab, the net sown area increased by 645,000 hectares, while the net area irrigated decreased by 47,000 hectares," the book says. Only 24 per cent of Punjab's irrigated area is served by canals - Bhakra canals, as well as other canal systems. In Haryana, canals serve about half the irrigated area.
Agarwal says under the Indus Water Treaty, India received 25 per cent of water share for consumption. "After Independence, a massive irrigation network was created. Some 34,500 km of irrigation network has been created by the Bhakra and Beas projects, serving 55,000 sq km, which is about eight per cent of the country's total irrigable area."
Yet, when it became operational in 1963, issues of resettlement and rehabilitation cropped up. Some of these remain unresolved. The villagers displaced by the Bhakra and Pong projects were settled in Haryana and Rajasthan; many of them endured great hardships and returned to Himachal. For the displaced, Nehru's October 22, 1963, speech terming Bhakra the "modern temple of resurgent India" does not mean much.
Despite manpower constraints, the BBMB's unique model - it operates as a non-profit entity under the governments of Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Haryana and Rajasthan - enables it to function seamlessly. At a time when power developers are reluctant to venture into hydro power generation, it produces the world's cheapest power, at 22 paise a unit.
As Agarwal says, "Those were different days. Now, it is difficult to even put up a factory."
Holding on to hope
Jhandutta (Bilaspur), Himachal Pradesh
When water came gushing near their land as the Bhakra reservoir was being filled up in 1957, Nand Lal Sharma of Kaharwin village in Bilaspur district of Himachal Pradesh was touching his teens. "It was like a tamasha (show). We ran to see it. Nobody was sure about what was happening; not even my father because the awareness level was low at that time."
Sharma, in May 2002, retired from the state's directorate of prosecution in Shimla. Three years later, Bhakra Visthapith Sudhar Samiti was formed. On November 9, over 20 people of the Samiti gathered at Bharoli Khurda temple for a monthly meeting. One of them gets some sitting mats. Slowly, the gathering starts to swell.
The organisation represents dam oustees of Bilaspur. Some 205 villages in Bilaspur and 110 in Una were submerged in the Gobind Sagar which offers a picturesque view along the highway from Anandpur Sahib. But, after Bilaspur town, the Sagar looks like a dead puddle of water. Those who are lucky to have land along it, use water for irrigation but in higher reaches, villagers have no access. Of the 2,179 families that were rehabilitated in Sirsa and Hisar districts of Haryana, many returned because they were threatened by the locals.
Soon after the Bhakra anniversary was celebrated, Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh gave 118 plots to oustees. Others have been assured of plots in Bilaspur town. But, Sharma tells the members: "We should not accept these plots. Ask for land in the panchayat area with all the facilities." Plots where there is no water or roads are of no use. "We should not get aligned with any political party, but only build pressure. It is a question of our right." What lives on, even after 50 years, is the hope.
Politics of prosperity
Sonkhiya (Ropar), Punjab
A Punjabi wedding can be extravagant in any setting. On November 8, at a marriage in one of Punjab's urban villages, entry as a guest from the groom's side was not difficult. But marriage is an unlikely place for a chat on the benefits of the multipurpose hydel project based in Himachal Pradesh's Bhakra village. It touches Nangal in Punjab and has 159 km of canal running across the state.
In the afternoon sun, a few men sat around a bottle of whisky. In a corner, farmers from Ropar and Patiala districts in their formal suits and shirts agree for a chat. There is near-unanimity on Bhakra's benefits. Besides power, farmers along the canal are allowed to draw water at an annual fee of Rs 50 an acre. The canal also recharges groundwater. "If it was not for this, there would have been no water left," says Parmjit Singh from Uksisaini village in the Patiala district.
He blames farmers for overdrawing groundwater which has left some areas with only saline water. Just then, Parmjit is interrupted by a much younger Jarnail Singh of Bahadurpur village in Ropar. An angry Jarnail blames the state's power policy. "Big farmers draw water through pump sets using free power and make a business out of selling water. They should charge something for the power," he says. Parmjit is, however, sure Nehru's Temple of Modern India is responsible for "India's development". He says floods have been prevented. Besides, Punjab has been the country's granary on the strength of the project.
The Dam that Built India
* Chasing a leopard at Bhakra village in Himachal Pradesh, Sir Louis Dane, a British general, chanced upon the Suni and Badu gorges where the river Sutlej flowed in full fury
* On November 8, 1908, he sent a proposal to the colonial rulers for constructing a reservoir for water storage and power . The proposal was junked on account of prohibitive cost
* Draft Bilaspur Agreement between Punjab government and Raja of Bilaspur, in 1945, restricted maximum reservoir level to 1,580 feet
* Three years later, in 1948, the project was redesigned to have a reservoir level of 1,680 ft; later with the Bilaspur state no more in the picture, it was increased to 1,685 feet
* After several project reports, the final proposal of a multipurpose power plant came up in 1951
* Bhakra Canal System inaugurated on July 7, 1954, preceded the dam. A 10-km rail line was constructed to carry material and manpower. It still runs free service for locals and BBMB staff.
* Construction activity started in full swing only after April 1952, when M Harvey Slocum, an American engineer, arrived with his team
* Nehru, who showcased the project as "resurgent India's new temple", visited the project 10 times during its construction and dedicated it to the nation on October 22, 1963
