Rihand Dam

Rihand Dam
Location of Rihand Dam
Coordinates 24°12′9″N 83°0′29″E / 24.20250°N 83.00806°ECoordinates: 24°12′9″N 83°0′29″E / 24.20250°N 83.00806°E
Construction began 1954
Opening date 1962
Dam and spillways
Height 91 m (299 ft)
Length 934 m (3,064 ft)
Reservoir
Total capacity 10.6 billion cubic metres
Active capacity 8.9 billion cubic metres
Inactive capacity 1.7 billion cubic metres
Catchment area 5,148 km2 (1,988 sq mi)
Power station
Turbines 6 x 50 MW Francis-type
Installed capacity 300 MW[1]

Rihand Dam (Hindi: रिहन्द बांध) is a concrete gravity dam located at Pipri in Sonbhadra District in Uttar Pradesh, India. Its reservoir area is on the border of Madhya pradesh and Uttar Pradesh. This reservoir is known as Govind Ballabh Pant Sagar. It is on the Rihand River which is the tributary of the Son River. The catchment area of this dam is spread in Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh & Chhattisgarh whereas it supplies irrigation water in Bihar located in the downstream of the river.

Specifications

Rihand dam is a concrete gravity dam with a length of 934.21 m. The maximum height of the dam is 91.44 m and was constructed during period 1954-62. The dam comprises 61 independent blocks and ground joints. The powerhouse is situated at the toe of the dam, with installed capacity of 300 MW (6 units of 50 MW each). The Intake Structure is situated between blocks no. 28 to 33. The Dam is in distress condition. It is proposed to carry out the rehabilitation works in the dam and the powerhouse. The F.R.L. of the dam is 268.22 m and it impounds 8.6 Million Acreft of water. It is one of the biggest reservoir by its gross storage capacity in India but sufficient water is not flowing in to the reservoir.

Many super thermal power stations are located in the catchment area of the dam. These are Singrauli, Vindyachal, Rihand, Anpara & Sasan super thermal power stations and Renukoot thermal station. The high alkalinity run off water from the ash dumps (some are located in the reservoir area) of these coal fired power stations ultimately collects in this reservoir enhancing its water alkalinity and pH. Using high alkalinity water for irrigation converts the agriculture fields in to fallow Alkali soils.[2] The construction of the dam resulted in forced relocation of nearly 100,000 people [3]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Rihand Power Station, Pipri, District : Sonebhadra (UP)". UPDESCO. Retrieved 10 July 2011.
  2. ↑ "Monitoring the contamination in the Rihand reservoir". Retrieved 5 December 2013.
  3. ↑ B. Terminski, Development-Induced Displacement: Theoretical Frameworks and Current Challenges, Geneva, 2013