The document discusses India's interlinking of rivers project which aims to transfer water from "surplus" river basins to "deficit" basins to increase irrigation and reduce regional imbalances. It is proposed to link 30 river basins through a network of reservoirs and canals. However, the concepts of surplus and deficit are problematic as they do not consider environmental flows or the needs of local communities and ecosystems. The project would require numerous dams and canals and faces huge financial and social costs as well as interstate and international issues. Real solutions are needed that do not rely on large inter-basin water transfer projects.
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Inter Linking of Rivers_Shripad, Manthan Adhyayan Kendra_July 16,2014
1. Manthan Adhyayan Kendra July 17, 2014
Interlinking of Rivers (ILR)
Shripad Dharmadhikary,
Manthan Adhyayan Kendra
Image: Wikimedia Commons
2. Core Idea
Transfer of “surplus”
water from one basin to
another “deficit” basin
Transfer from “flooded”
rivers to those with
“drought and scarcity”
Manthan Adhyayan Kendra July 17, 2014
3. Rationale and
Justification
Need to irrigate 160 m ha for food
self sufficiency by 2050, but
assessed potential from
conventional sources 140 m ha
Floods in one part of the country,
droughts in other
Reduction of regional imbalances
Manthan Adhyayan Kendra July 17, 2014
4. Benefits
Additional irrigation of 25 m ha
from surface and 10 m ha from
groundwater
34,000 MW of hydropower
Host of other benefits
Manthan Adhyayan Kendra July 17, 2014
5. The ILR Plans
Manthan Adhyayan Kendra July 17, 2014
Inter Linking of Rivers
Formal name – National Perspective Plan
16 links in Peninsular India
14 links in Himalayan region, several
transboundary
Plus, many intra-state links
8. Polavaram
Par Tapi Narmada
Ken Betwa
Parbati Kalisindh Chambal
Manthan Adhyayan Kendra July 17, 2014
Some Active ILR Projects
9. Time Line
Idea of national water grid Dr. K.L Rao (then
irrigation Minister), 1972
Garland Canal, Capt. Dastur 1977
Both rejected as “economically prohibitive and
“technically infeasible”
MoWR and CWC in 1980 formulated the NPP
Supreme Court order to expedite ILR 2002,
complete by 10 years
Supreme Court order of 27 Feb 2012, constitution of
a “Special Committee for Interlinking of Rivers”
headed by Minister, WR
Manthan Adhyayan Kendra July 17, 2014
10. Not a new thing
Many earlier attempts
Periyar Project
Parambikulam
Aliyar
Beas Sutluj Link
Narmada –
Sabarmati !
Manthan Adhyayan Kendra July 17, 2014
Map by: Rehmat/Manthan
13. Issues and
Problems
Notion of surplus and deficit problematic
Lack of recognition that different water flows
represent different ecological systems
E-flows becoming a major issue in all river basins,
e-flows show that current notion of surplus is limited
and wrong understanding
A little digression…
Manthan Adhyayan Kendra July 17, 2014
14. E-flows: Some
Concepts
Manthan Adhyayan Kendra July 17, 2014
“The full range of natural intra- and inter-annual
variation in hydrologic regimes, and associated
characteristics of timing, duration, frequency, and
rate of change, are critical in sustaining the full
native biodiversity and integrity of aquatic
ecosystems.”
(Poff et al. 1997)
Flow variation is the characteristic and all important
parameter in defining river ecology, livlihoods and
lives
20. Ecological functions of flow
Channel form
Habitat complexity
Patch disturbance
Biotic diversity
Principle 1
Life history patterns
• Flowers & seeds
• Growth strategy
Principle 2
Lateral connectivity
Longitudinal connectivity
Principle 3
Natural regime discourages invasions
Principle 4
Time
Discharge
Bunn & Arthington 2002
Environmental Flows20
21. Issues and
Problems
Apart from a mistaken notion of surplus
No proper definition of surplus or deficit
Surplus estimated based only on irrigation, water
supply and hydropower needs
Needs of river, ecology, community, livelihoods not
considered
Irrigation needs (maximum possible irrigation)
assessed only on basis of large dams systems
Decentralised, rainwater harvesting potential not
considered
Manthan Adhyayan Kendra July 17, 2014
22. Issues and
Problems
Many dams, canals, tunnels
SANDRP estimates at least 78 dams and barrages
Huge social and environmental impacts
Particularly downstream impacts, displacement
Very high lifts, up to 120 m
Huge financial costs 340,000 crore Himalayan,
103,000 crore Peninsular, at 2003-04 prices
Interstate issues as many rivers are multi-state
International issues – ILR requires dams in Nepal,
Bhutan
Diverting attention from real solutions
Manthan Adhyayan Kendra July 17, 2014
Notes de l'éditeur
MoWR affidavit said completion of the link projects ultimately will be by the year 2035 in respect of Peninsular Link Project and 2043 regarding Himalayan Link Project. http://nwda.gov.in/index2.asp?slid=58&sublinkid=52&langid=1 / ILR in supreme court, in Other ILR Matters, NWDA
It is possible to describe flow regime in terms of five states or environmental flow components:
Extreme low flows, Low flows, High flow pulses, Small floods and Large floods
The health and integrity of river systems ultimately depend on these components, which may vary seasonally (Mathews and Richter, 2007). These components have repeatedly been considered as ecologically important in a broad spectrum of hydro-climatic regions and help in organising the information for the environmental flow assessments.
The Environmental Flow Components do not have strict definitions and they grade into one another. In practice, statistical criteria are used (eg software IHA), but these should be verified.
This conceptual figure developed by Bunn and Arthington (2002) organizes the ecological functions of flow into four principles.
Principle 1 considers the importance of flow as a major determinant of physical habitat in streams and resultant biotic diversity and composition. This begins with determining the shape and size of rivers (river form), the complexity of habitats and disturbance regime.
Principle 2 considers the many ways in which life histories of aquatic and riparian organisms are adapted to natural flow regimes. The timing, magnitude, frequency, and duration of a given flow influences growth strategies and changes in flow often serve as cues for the beginning or end of stages in an organisms life history. Rates of flow changes also exert strong influences, especially with regard to necessary growth rates of aquatic plants and animals.
Principle 3 considers the importance of given flows to maintain lateral and longitudinal connectivity in river corridors. This is especially important for organisms that migrate during their life history, either upstream and downstream or into adjacent floodplains. Connectivity is often lost when rivers are regulated by dams, dikes, and other infrastructural control measures.
Principle 4 considers that alterations to natural flow regimes often advantage invasive species, allowing them to out-compete native species that are disadvantaged by modified habitats, losses in connectivity, and disruptions to annual cycles of flow variability.
These principles are further clarified in the following slides.
Bunn, S. E. and A. H. Arthington (2002). "Basic principles and ecological consequences of altered flow regimes for aquatic biodiversity." Environmental Management 30(4): 492-507.