Urban News

The dams will be over the rivers Damanganga in Gujarat, and the Pinjar and the Wagh in Thane. They are part of a project to interconnect 30 rivers across the country.

In May, then Chief Minister Ashok Chavan, Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi, and Maharashtra Minister for Water Resources signed an agreement, a copy of which is with Newsline, for the dams to interlink the rivers.

The Damanganga river, over which the Bhugad dam will be built in Valsad, Gujarat, originates in Peth taluka in Nashik district and empties itself in the Daman creek. “Since the water was being emptied in the creek, it was decided to use the excess for Mumbai,” said an official with the state irrigation department.

The Khargi Hills dam over the Wagh will be built in Mokhada, Thane. The third dam, at Pinjar, will be built by the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA). The Bhugad dam will have a capacity of 400 MLD and the Khargi Hills dam will have a capacity of 420 MLD, with a major part of the total meant for Mumbai and its extended western suburbs such as Mira Road-Bhayander and Vasai-Virar.

The irrigation department will build the tunnel connecting the three dams. The link between Bhugad and Khargi Hills will be 16.85 km; that between Khargi Hills and Pinjal will be 25.70 km. 

“Most of the region is hilly and densely forested and parts are reserved forest areas. To minimise the impact on the environment, it has been decided to build RCC tunnels. The National Water Development Agency ) is preparing a detailed project report,” said the official.

“The government resolution is out and the decision is to be taken by the Authority,” said D T Dange, chief adviser to the MMRDA’s water resource management cell. The MMRDA will be the nodal agency; sources said the BMC too will fund part of the project.

“It is yet to be decided whether the dam would be jointly owned by the BMC and the MMRDA or whether the BMC will draw water and simply pay us,” Dange said.