Bhakra Dam as national waterway: Cabinet to take call

Kuldeep Chauhan

Tribune News Service

Shimla, December 27

The state government has embarked on an ambitious project to promote water transport, but it’s not going to be a cakewalk as there are many hitches that will have to be surmounted before the eco-friendly initiative can become a reality.

Though the Inland Waterway Authority of India (IWAI) has asked the state government to declare Bhakra Dam as the ‘national waterway highway’, the matter is yet to be placed before the Cabinet for final nod.

The state government has hired e-Maritime, a Mumbai-based consultant, to undertake the feasibility study for the Rs 100-crore ambitious waterway project in the state. Under the project, ‘roll-on and roll-off (Roro) mechanised vehicles’ will ferry the cement-laden trucks from three big plants that choke the National Highway- 21 between Ropar and Bilaspur.

The mechanised vehicles will be used on the water stretches connecting Hanogi and Pandoh in Mandi, between Slappar and Nangal in Bhakra Dam and in Chamera Dam in Chamba. All these four waterways fall in the districts of Kangra, Mandi, Bilsapur and Chamba.

“Though the project will be given final shape only after the feasibility study is complete, but declaring Bhakra Dam as a national waterway is the main pre-requisite under the Inland Waterways Act, which will have to be enacted at the state level,” said transport officials.

What weighs on the mind of the officials is the fact that there could be some opposition by the locals as the dam is a major fishing pond on which the livelihood of a sizeable population of the area depends. As such the NoC from the State Fisheries Department will have to be obtained before initiating the project. Besides, the approval of the Bhakra Beas Management Authority (BBMB) will also be mandatory.

However, the project can prove to be a boon for thousands of people who will be able to transport their agricultural and horticultural produce in a much less duration and at cheaper rates. “Besides, ferrying cement and other goods, the project will make public transport much cheaper— at Rs 6 per km as against Rs 11 per km by road,” said RN Batta, secretary, Transport.

“Using the waterways will reduce the distance drastically and also help de-congest roads. Cement-laden trucks put commuters to inconvenience, especially during the tourist season,” said the officials. They pointed out that an estimated 7,000 trucks travelled to and fro on the National Highway-21.