Parliament Panel visits KRS Dam to inspect crest gates works

Srirangapatna/Mysuru: Amidst a High Court-imposed total ban on mining and quarrying activities within a 20-km radius of the historic Krishna Raja Sagar (KRS) Dam in Mandya District, a delegation from the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Water Resources visited the Dam yesterday. 

The purpose of the visit by the Committee on Water Resources is to examine the implementation of various programmes and schemes of the Ministry of Jal Shakti, Department of Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation and the Department of Drinking Water and Sanitation. 

The delegation, which began the tour to Bhubaneswar, Tirupati, Mysuru and Bengaluru on Jan. 6, will conclude the visit in Bengaluru today. This morning, they visited a site in Ramanagara. 

The team is headed by Chairman Parbatbhai Savabhai Patel and of the 30-member Parliamentary Standing Committee, seven visited the KRS Dam, accompanied by the officials. Former PM and Rajya Sabha MP H.D. Deve Gowda and Bangalore Rural MP D.K. Suresh too are members of the Committee. While Deve Gowda could not visit the Dam yesterday due to his health condition, Suresh stayed away due to prior engagements. 

The Central team was welcomed by a delegation of elected representatives headed by former Minister C.S. Puttaraju and former MLC K.T. Srikantegowda. During the visit, the Parliamentary team also performed puja to Goddess Cauvery at Dam.

The delegation conducted a thorough examination of the KRS Dam, aiming to assess the reservoir’s current condition. Officials told Star of Mysore that the team took stock of the project to replace the sluice gates that is nearing completion now. 

For the first time, 136 crest gates are being replaced at the Dam. In all, there are 153 sluice gates at various levels through which water is released and in 2003, 17 sluice gates at 80 feet level were replaced as they were either corroded or damaged.

Now, the project is nearing completion where 136 gates are in the process of getting replaced. The project was initiated with the financial support of the Centre and the World Bank under the Dam Rehabilitation and Improvement Project and the World Bank has released a financial aid of Rs. 69 crore.

Officers said that the Parliamentary delegation saw the progress of the gate replacement works and were also apprised of the delay in the project due to COVID-19 and non-availability of skilled workers.

During discussions, former Minister C.S. Puttaraju specifically addressed the concerns about the condition of dams along the Cauvery Basin, issues faced by farmers and the necessary funds for the development of the Dam and the Brindavan Gardens. He also told the Committee that Karnataka was facing a huge water shortage and the resultant challenges faced by the people in the Old Mysuru region.

Water Department Secretary Krishnamurthy B. Kulkarni, Cauvery Neeravari Nigama Limited (CNNL) Managing Director Mahesh, Technical Assistant to State Water Resources Minister Jayaprakash, Chief Engineer R.L. Venkatesh, Superintendent Engineer Raghuraman, Executive Engineer Jayanth, Assistant Executive Engineers Abu Farooq and Kishore Kumar and others accompanied the Parliamentary delegation during inspection.