Flood Update II from Water Initiatives Odisha
11th September 2011
Dear co-sailors,
On 9th September we brought the first Flood Update for this
year from the state of Odisha. This is
the Second Update in the series and by the time we write this we are getting
information that the Mega Flood of 2011 has already gripped 19 districts into
its folder and conservative estimates put that at least a million people have
been marooned by this. 60 thousand
people have been evacuated from their places.
What we also see that despite being one of the first states to have a
Disaster Management Agency place, the state of Orissa has virtually failed in
both predicting and managing the floods.
In our first update we narrated how the Hirakud dam has once again
failed, miserably, in managing floods in Mahanadi. Today, in our LEAD section we are throwing
more light on such Big Dams and what experts say. Time the Govt. of Odisha takes these notes
seriously and new management domains are put in place. Or else, each flood we will be caught
unawares and the blame game will continue.
As already informed, we are deliberately keeping the format of this
update very simple and user friendly. In
this update we have the following sections.
After giving our view point in
the LEAD Section, we take you back to the September 2008 floods in the LOOKING
BACK section. Then we hand pick some NEWS
from different sources with the objective of giving you a latest picture of the
flood, its impact and relief-rehabilitation measures on way in the state, both
by government and other agencies. We
then provide you with small important statistics in our STATS section that are
useful in assessing the current situation of reservoirs, rainfall, etc. Finally, in the MET SPEAKS section, we highlight
some of the key weather forecasts that may affect the flood conditions and
relief-rehabilitation oprerations.
Once again, we would like to inform you that, at the moment, it’s
occasional and we may come up with these updates as and when we can, given our
limited manpower and resources. However,
with your inputs and support, we are sure; we shall be able to ensure regular
flow of this update.
We request you to send in your reports of activities, your views; and
any other interesting and relevant article, books, photographs, and anything
that you feel we should cover in this Update.
It’s YOU who is the most important FUEL of this effort.
Look forward to listen from you and your continued support.
Thanks and regards,
Ranjan Panda
Convenor,
Water Initiatives Odisha
STOP
PRESS: At 12.00 on 11.09.2011, Reservoir Level of
Hirakud was 628.21 and 43 Sluice Gates were open. 6,67,955 cusecs was inflow
and 7,95,013 cusecs was the outflow. At
about 12.30, orders came to close two more gates.
LEAD
How
effective are big dams in managing floods?
As Odisha’s flood condition worsens, role and effectiveness
of Big Dams calls for a fresh debate.
Each time a flood occurs we are reminded of the fact that these dams
have not been a solution to floods.
Still the government keeps on claiming that Big Dams are necessary. The floods of 2011 exposes how not only the
Hirakud dam has failed miserably in managing the flood but also shows that we
have no systems in place through which we can co-ordinate with Chhattisgarh and
the Indian Meteorological Department.
The obsolete ‘rule curve’, which has not been revised since 1988, needs
an immediate overhaul with integration of latest ‘flood forecasting
projections’ that incorporates effective climate change models. Our government which has been aggressively
pushing water sector reforms through Integrated Water Resources Management
(IWRM) needs also understand that Mahanadi is not our river alone. Chhattisgarh has to be taken on board and
both the states need to enter into a legally enforceable treaty to develop and
manage Mahanadi waters. And both these
governments must understand that Mahanadi needs to flow unabated and a lot has
to be done with flood plain management including that in the urban
habitations. This requires a thorough
basin planning on human settlements, forestry and soil conservation. Large dams have never been effective in
flood control. Rather, they have always
aggravated the impacts.
Some important
observation by scholars and experts on Big Dams:
“In many ways, India’s colonial legacy
reinforced the pursuit of hydraulic capitalism through the large dam.
Historically, technologies for hydraulic manipulation in the Indian
subcontinent have moved through three distinct, though overlapping, phases…. In
the early nineteenth century, however, British colonialism initiated a radical
break in both technique and hydraulic principle by introducing perennial canal
irrigation in several parts of the South Asian subcontinent. For the first
time, permanent headworks in the form of barrages and weirs were thrown across
riverbeds, and their waters were diverted through intricate and extensive canal
systems…. In effect, by flattening the river’s variable flow regime at certain
points along its course, irrigation was transformed from a seasonal to a
perennial possibility. This phase, often referred to as the advent of the era
of modern irrigation, witnessed the construction of several large canal
irrigation schemes with permanent headworks such as the Ganges Canal (1854),
the Godavery system (1852), and the Krishna system (1855). These
big-engineering efforts, in several ways, had profound transformative impacts.
The civil engineer and the bureaucratic control of water, in particular, soon
caused the expropriation of the skills of the local irrigator and unsettled the
“fluvial wisdom” of the community…
Changes in irrigation technologies were
also followed by dramatic alterations to entire hydraulic environments. The
case in point being that of the eastern deltas (contemporary Bengal, Bihar, and
Orissa), which were transformed from being flood dependent agrarian regimes
into flood vulnerable landscapes. In the quest for comprehensive flood control,
the colonial dispensation undertook the systematic construction of flood
control embankments to hem in rivers within their main channels….
Today, globally, according to a recent
count, over 45,000 large dams currently sit astride innumerable river valleys,
gorges, and “gun-shot” sites.10 Formerly wild cascading flows are now put to
work—running turbines, marching as orderly cusecs in irrigation canals,
providing the measured electric hum for industrial machines, and winding their
way diligently through drinking water pipes or simply contained as silent
volumes in immense reservoirs. The river has been put on tap.”
-
ROHAN D’SOUZA
“High releases from some major hydrodams
due to their operating regime can both increase the damage caused during the
normal flood season and cause unprecedented out-of-season inundation…. Numerous
cases have been recorded of floods which have been made worse because dam operators
held back water while the reservoir was filling, and then, when the rains kept
on coming, had to op en their spillway s to maximum capacity to prevent their
dam from being overtopped. India’s Hirakud Dam was first justified in the name
of flood control, yet extreme floods in the Mahanadi Delta between 1960 and
1980 were three times more frequent than before Hirakud was built. In September
1980, hundreds of people were killed after releases from Hirakud breached
downstream embankments. Orissa’s Chief Minister admitted that panic releases of
water from Hirakud were responsible for much of the devastation but argued that
if the water had not been discharged as quickly as possible, the dam could have
failed.”
-
PATRICK
McCULLY
India's monsoons are legendary. Very heavy
rains can come in concentrated periods, making the runoff particularly hard to
manage with traditional engineered solutions. This has not prevented the Indian
government from trying to use big dams, embankments, floodwalls and the like to
control floodwaters. When these efforts fail, they can fail catastrophically.
This is a story of one of those failures.
-
HIMANSHU
THAKKAR
=====================
LOOKING BACK
2008
Flood and Hirakud
Orissa flood
control policy needs review: experts
Bhubaneswar, Sep 29 (IANS) The recent floods in the Mahanadi
river that killed about 70 people and affected four million in Orissa have
sparked debate and experts Monday said the state must review its flood control
policy and take measures to avoid such large scale devastation in the future.
Two floods of massive magnitude - in the Kosi River in Bihar and the Mahanadi
river in Orissa have hit the nation in quick succession.
“The time has come to go to the root of the problem. We need
a proper study and review of our flood control policy to prevent further
devastation,” Ranjan K. Panda, convenor, Water Initiatives Orissa, told IANS.
“Over the last five decades, people were told that
engineering solutions were the only answer to control floods,” said Biswajit
Mohanty, secretary of the Wild Life Society of Orissa.
“However, the experiences of massive floods in 1955, 1982,
2001 and 2008 in the state have demonstrated the inadequacy and ineffectiveness
of such solutions,” Mohanty said.
“A lobby of engineers, politicians and contractors has been
successful in mobilizing large amounts of public funds to construct yet more
bunds and embankments. All these measures proved futile,” Mohanty alleged.
Over 200,000 people have lost their homes in the recent
floods, the worst-affected districts being Kendrapada, Cuttack, Jagatgsinghpur
and Puri where 240 embankment breaches were reported…..
…“The government created a flood situation to divert the
public attention from the communal riots that has killed many people and made
thousands homeless in the state’s Kandhamal district,” J.B. Patnaik alleged.
Source: IANS, Sept 29, 2008
Controversy
over Hirakud issue deepens
-
Senior IPS
officer demands serious action against those responsible for bungling
-
Central
Water Commission unaware of this flood cushion capacity, he says
-
Hirakud
dam operators forced to release over 4.62 lakh cusecs
BHUBANESWAR: Controversies erupted over “faulty” management
of water in Hirakud reservoir continue to be getting thickened with a senior
IPS officer demanding criminal cases be registered against those responsible
for the mess.
Arun Kumar Upadhyay, now Deputy Inspector General of police
at Biju Patnaik State Police Academy dashed a letter to Water Resource Secretary
Arabinda Behera.
“A minimum margin of 5 feet below danger level of 630 feet
has to be kept (maximum allowed level is 625 feet). But authorities waited till
voting that started on September 19 for municipal elections and allowed the
level to reach 629.80 feet. Democracy does not mean that life of people loses
its value after casting their votes,” Mr. Upadhyay said in his letter.
The senior IPS officer stated facts in the letter on the
basis of his experience as Assistant Superintendent of Police at Hirakud in
1980 and his thesis on land-water management as Indian Forest Service
(Punjab-1974) officer and had done management of Punjab-shelterwood system and
Jamanwala-Cho in Hoshiarpur district in 1976.
He said Central Water Commission was unaware about this flood
cushion capacity as siltation had reduced storage capacity from 5.818 to 4.647
BCM (Billion cubic meters. He suggested periodical short bursts of water to
clear siltation in reservoir-as per Russian model.
Earlier South Asia Network on Dams, Rivers and People
charged wrong operation of Hirakud Dam was responsible for the current flood
disaster in Mahanadi basin in the State .
“The Hirakud dam operators have kept the water level way
above the rule curve recommended for the dam in 1988, ever since August 1,
2008, when the rule curve for current year comes into operation.
Had the dam operated in a way to keep the level below the
recommended level, the current flood disaster could have been avoided,”
Himanshu Thakkar of the network said.
“The Hirakud dam operators are forced to release over 4.62
lakh cusecs, because the water level at the dam has already reached the full
reservoir level of 630 feet on September 18 which should have been reached that
level 12 days later on September 30,” he said.
On the other hand, Sambalpur-based Water Initiatives Orissa
(WIO), a non-government organisation, said other factors worked for the chaos
at reservoir end.
“While there is some truth in that, the fact is that factors
like climate change and underlining shift in priorities of the reservoir has
grossly limited the scope of the reservoir in mitigating high flood, especially
during the later parts of the monsoon. And the ‘Rule curve’ that is being
followed since 1988 has become obsolete and dangerous in the present day context,”
WIO convener Ranjan Panda said.
Mr. Panda said analysis should be done as to how emerging
issues like climate change and industrial tilt in water allocation had made
dams causing floods rather than provide protections from the flood.
Source: The Hindu, September 25 2008
=============
NEWS
Floods
hit over 10 lakh in Orissa
60,000 evacuated from
low-lying areas to safer places
More than 10 lakh
people in 19 districts of Orissa were affected by floods on Saturday.
The coastal districts of Cuttack, Kendrapara and
Jagatsinghpur will get a huge volume of floodwater with 14.05 lakh cusecs
flowing through the Mahanadi at Baramul, less than 100 km from Cuttack.
Flood managers and relief administrators are keeping their
fingers crossed over the possible devastation. “The administration is prepared
to meet any eventuality,” Praditpa Mohapatra, Special Relief Commissioner, told
a press conference here.
According to the State government, 2,550 villages and 13
towns have been affected by the floods. At least 8 persons have lost their
lives. Besides, there is a report of 3 persons being swept away in Nayagarh
district.
The floods have damaged 10,565 houses in Bargarh, Boudh,
Deogarh, Jajpur, Nuapada and Sambalpur districts. About 60,000 people have been
evacuated from low-lying areas to safer places and provided with food. As many
as 152 relief camps and free kitchen centres have been opened in marooned
villages.
The State government has put the Navy on alert to carry out
rescue operations. A ship carrying relief material has been sent by the Navy
from Visakhapatnam. A helicopter procured for anti-Naxalite operations would be
used for dropping food materials in marooned villages. School and colleges in
flood-hit districts have been closed down.
Source: The Hindu, 11th September
2011
Administration
gears up for relief and rescue
With more than 133 villages in four blocks caught in the
grip of severe flood as of now, Cuttack district waits with fear and anxiety
for the passage of the peak water flow through the Mahanadi and the Kathjodi
rivers by Saturday morning.
More than 13 lakh cusecs of water is expected to flow
through the rivers aggravating the flood situation in the district on Saturday
even as the administrative machinery is being mobilised in all the blocks and
the vulnerable zones to be ready for relief and rescue operations.
Over 500 people from the Ranibhauni village under
Narsinghpur block were evacuated to safer places on Friday as the swelling
rivers caused widespread inundation and submergence in the low-lying areas.
Around 300 families from the slum pockets that have come up
on the outer slopes of the Mahanadi and the Kathjodi rivers in Cuttack city
were also shifted to the upper reaches of the embankments.
Vast areas of Banki and Athgarh subdivisions were cut off
from the mainland due to water ingress from the Mahanadi river.
Three villages of Brajrajpur, Basudevpur, Mulabasantpur
under Mahanga block and several villages under Banki and Athgarh blocks were
reported to have been marooned.
The passage of the huge volume of water released from
Hirakud reservoir by Saturday morning is poised to cause more widespread
devastation in the district.
Water level at the Bellevue gauge point hovered around 21.50
ft on Friday evening. It would cross the danger mark by night, sources said.
Revenue Minister Surya Narayan Patro on Friday visited
Cuttack and reviewed the situation with Collector Girish SN and other
administration officials.
The Collector said village-level teams have been formed at
all the blocks to respond to the emergency situation at the earliest.
They have been provided with emergency relief materials like
polythene, dry food products, kerosene and medicines to deal with the situation
till additional assistance reached the marooned and cut-off pockets.
ODRAF teams have been stationed at Banki, Tigiria, Sadar and
Nischintkoili blocks to undertake immediate operations.
Around 44 identified vulnerable points in the embankments in
the district were provided with special personnel to undertake 24-hour vigil and
carry out necessary containment exercises during the eventualities.
The New Indian Express, 11th
September 2011
Orissa
flood victims slam government's apathy
Flood victims in Kendrapada district, Orissa, on Saturday
criticised the state government for not being able to provide medical and
relief aid.
Huts and houses were submerged in the flood water and people
were forced to move out with their belongings.
Hundreds of people sat on boats and tractors, as knee-length
water made it difficult for them to walk.
"We were guarding the village and at midnight the
embankment had breeched and flood waters reached the village. We are facing a
lot of problem due to the flood. We are not getting drinking water and without
boats we are unable to move out from the village. The government should
understand our problem. We have not received any relief yet," said Sasmita
Samal, a resident.
Temples and other small sheds were completely submerged in
floodwater and only the roof visible.
While on the other hand, the district collector Pradipta
Kumar Patnaik said that the administration had taken precautionary measures and
is equipped to face any calamity.
"Wherever there is a possibility of breech of
embankment, we have arranged the rescue team ahead of any disaster. We have also
asked the BDO (block development officer) to stock food. Those blocks that are
most prone to be affected by the flood, we have already given them extra ration
to distribute it to locals. Our health team is also there to handle the
situation," said Patnaik.
Heavy rains led to the overflowing of rivers and breach in
embankments in the state.
More than 52 villages in the district have been affected due
to flood.
Floodwaters have affected the transportation services in the
area.
As on September 9, the state chief Naveen Patnaik said that
the district officials were alerted and they were asked to provide relief to
people as soon as possible.
"We are closely monitoring the situation. The district
administrations are fully geared up to face any eventuality. The control rooms
are functioning around the clock. Food materials have been stocked in all
vulnerable places. Patrolling of the embankments is being done continuously.
Additional manpower has been mobilised for all the sensitive districts,"
said Naveen Patnaik.
According to media reports, high alert has been sounded in
about 11 other districts.
News reports also said the government has asked the state
Disaster Rapid Action Force (ODRAF) to be fully prepared for the flood rescue
and relief operations. (ANI)
Source:
webindia123.com, 10th September 2011
Flood
affected to take shelter on National Highway
With coastal Orissa facing a severe flood, Paradip Port
Trust (PPT) has cleared the National Highway-5(A) off traffic in order to
provide shelter to the affected people, official sources said today.Over 5000
iron-ore laden trucks carrying minerals to Paradip port have been unloaded on
war-footing by yesterday.The entire 80-km stretch Paradip-Chandikhol Express
Highway was cleared off all traffic so that affected people can take shelter on
the highway as the remaining low-lying areas remain inundated."Our
fool-proof emergency services are on standby at vintage places," PPT
chairman D Jagannath Rao said.Besides, the PPT authorities had requested the
concerned officials not to allow any iron-ore laden truck on the route till the
situation became normal.Meanwhile, Rao had visited vulnerable places near
Singitali, Chaumuhani and Taladanda canal areas on the banks of turbulent Devi
river, a branch of the Mahanadi, to supervise emergency preparedness.Mega
industries including Essar and IFCO are located in the area.The state
government had asked the PPT authorities to take stock of the situation ahead
of imminent floods on the Mahanadi river system criss-crossing undivided Cuttack
district."This is a routine process during floods. The state government
issues instructions to all concerned to remain alert", official sources
said.The port's security agency along with boats and other machinery had been
deployed in those areas with adequate relief materials including parched rice,
gur, candles, halogen tables, water packets, Rao said adding officials and
employees were asked to remain alert to face any situation.
Source: ibnlive.in.com, 10th
September
INS
Airavat in Orissa to tackle flood situation
The Eastern Naval Command based here has dispatched a
Landing Ship Tank (Large) for relief operations along Mahanadi river on the
request of Orissa government.
The ship INS Airavat, with a Chetak helicopter on its board,
is also carrying three diving teams along with rescue equipment and medical
supplies to tackle the situation, a defence release said today.
The ship will be joined further by divers and two more boats
from the Naval officer-in-charge-Orissa, it said.
According to the release, INS Airavat is scheduled to reach
Paradip tomorrow morning and will coordinate with the Disaster Management
Authority of Orissa in the relief operations in the seven districts affected by
floods following incessant rains and discharge from Hirakund reservoir.
Source:
http://worldofdefense.blogspot.com, 11 September 2011
===========
STATS
|
HIRAKUD
|
RENGALI
|
BALIMELA
|
UPPER KOLAB
|
INDRAVATI
|
SALANDI
|
|
|
97.0%
|
97.8%
|
17.2%
|
25.6%
|
27.0%
|
50.7%
|
|
|
Time:1200 hrs
|
Time:1200 hrs
|
Time:0800 hrs
|
Time:0800 hrs
|
Time:0800 hrs
|
Time:0600 hrs
|
|
|
Reservoir Level & position wrt. Full Reservoir Level
|
||||||
|
RL: 629.27ft
|
RL: 123.38m
|
RL: 1459.9ft
|
RL: 849.24m
|
RL: 630.8m
|
RL: 73.22m
|
|
|
(-) 0.73ft
|
(-) 0.12m
|
(-) 56.10ft
|
(-) 8.76m
|
(-) 11.20m
|
(-) 9.08m
|
|
|
Reservoir Inflow & Outflow
|
||||||
|
I:994151Cusecs
|
I:6578.19Cumecs
|
I:177.54Cumecs
|
I:105.1Cumecs
|
I:175.11Cumecs
|
I:108.26Cumecs
|
|
|
O:981446Cusecs
|
O:3842.37Cumecs
|
O:89.06Cumecs
|
O:28.88Cumecs
|
O:79.85Cumecs
|
O:1.2Cumecs
|
|
|
Live Storage capacity & Live Storage available
|
||||||
|
Cap:482155 Ham
|
Cap:341371 Ham
|
Cap:267600 Ham
|
Cap:93500 Ham
|
Cap:148550 Ham
|
Cap:55650 Ham
|
|
|
LS:467728 Ham
|
LS:333827 Ham
|
LS:46086.55 Ham
|
LS:23958 Ham
|
LS:40034.55 Ham
|
LS:28239 Ham
|
|
|
The RED line corresponds to Full Reservoir
Capacity
|
||||||
Source:
http://www.dowrorissa.gov.in/Flood/ReservoirGraph.htm
================
Met Speaks
|
Sourece: IMD
===================
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Water Initiatives Odisha: Fighting
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===========
Water Initiatives Odisha (WIO) is a state level
coalition of civil society organisations, farmers, academia, media and other
concerned, which has been working on water, environment and climate change
issues in the state for more than two decades now.
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