Sardar Sarovar project
Also called: Sardar Sarovar Dam · Topic: Water Resources of India: Availability, Use and Conservation · NCERT: Class 10, Ch 3 "Water Resources"; Class 11, Ch 3 "Drainage System"; Class 11, Ch 6 "Natural Hazards and Disasters: Causes, Consequences and Management"
Meaning
The Sardar Sarovar project is a large multipurpose dam on the Narmada river. "Multipurpose" means it serves several uses at once: irrigation, drinking water, hydropower and flood control. It stands at Kevadia in Gujarat. It was completed in 2017 and is 138.68 m high. It shares its water among four states: Gujarat, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra. It matters for UPSC because it is a big development project and also a major case of people being displaced.
Example
The project irrigates 18.45 lakh hectares in 15 districts of Gujarat. It also irrigates 2.46 lakh hectares in Barmer and Jalore in dry western Rajasthan. Its reservoir drowned villages upstream. This led to the Narmada Bachao Andolan, led by Medha Patkar and Baba Amte. In 2000 the Supreme Court allowed construction to go on, but only if the displaced people were resettled.
Don't confuse with
- Tehri dam: it is on the Bhagirathi in Uttarakhand, not the Narmada. At about 260 m it is India's highest dam, and Sunderlal Bahuguna opposed it.
Related concepts
- Multipurpose river project
- Temples of modern India
- Bhakra-Nangal project
- Hirakud dam
- Damodar Valley Corporation
- Kaleshwaram lift irrigation project