Unique Substitute for Kalabagh Dam
A unique design concept
of unrestricted low-level silt sluicing flexible hydraulic structure is
developed for “creating valley storage in rivers with steep slope” to mitigate
power shortage, water shortage, super-floods and climate change that involves
no land acquisition, no land compensation, and no population displacement. It
is also a mid-term, unique and feasible substitute for
Kalabagh Dam.
I suggest long life, far more
beneficial to all provinces, non-controversial, technically feasible, mid-term,
fast track, and a unique design concept for valley storage in rivers with steep
slope by building a raised Fateh barrage to avail site potential at
the end of the Indus River valley. The raised barrage would consist of low dam-cum-barrage at elevation near
700 feet with in the Indus
River
The concept is to build about 100
feet low-dam at the bed level of 700 feet at the end of the Indus valley to
function as dead storage and to gain height for the raised Fateh
Barrage up to elevation 800 feet. On
the crest of this low dam a 50 to 60 feet high conventional barrage be built to
function as an unrestricted low-level silt sluicing hydraulic structure
to evacuate silt out of the reservoir. It will create 3.4 maf of gross storage at El 860 feet, that would repeatedly be
filled, as the Indus flow at this site is about 90 maf. The low-dam-cum
barrage concept is only possible in a valley and not in plain. The
unique feature of this barrage is that almost no land acquisition, no land compensation and no population
displacement is involved by the storage created. The storage reservoir will
occupy no-man-land within the reservoir.
Another unique feature is that it
is problems free, has more aggregate storage by repeated filling of reservoir than
Kalabagh Dam, more power generation capability, and needs no thermal power support of 2000 MW as required for of Kalabagh
Dam. The unique feature is that it will give unrestricted passage to supper
floods, evacuates complete silt, and has no adverse effect on Peshawar valley.
Rather the barrage may be able to irrigate lands in Laki Marwat area of
Bannu district by tunneling the mountain. The possibility may be
investigated to know the ground reality.
Surprisingly, the reservoir maximum retention elevation
of 860 feet is 100 feet lower than the reservoir retention level of Kalabagh
Dam (KBD). The height of low dam-cum-barrage is 100+60=160 feet where as the
KBD height is 260 feet.
The barrage would end 37 years
long, lunatic, status quo and political, and technical controversies on
hydraulic design of KBD for silt sluicing going on between the KBD consultants
and WAPDA, because of wrong and ordaining TOR. Refer to Volume N,
Appendix N of the project feasibility report. The status quo over KBD
prevailed because of wrong TOR and wrong selection of dam site where the
Capacity-inflow ratio is the poorest on the Indus and perhaps in the world
thereby creating silt evacuation problem and backwater flow in Kabul River
valley. The CI ratio clearly indicates that the site is for a barrage
and not for a dam. The controversy and status quo on KBD resulted in no dam
building for (37+10 years for Basha)=47 years
that resulted in darkness in the country by crippling load shedding that now
seems to be a permanent fixture if four multipurpose, mega dams on the
Indus at Katzarah, Guroh Dop Dam on Panjkora River and Mir Khani Dam on Chitral
Rivers are not built with-in 10 years from now. Moreover, flood of 2010
destroyed 22% of Pakistan .
Flood phobia persists and may visit any time and many time.
According to a newspaper, peak
shortage of power touched 7000 MW. The Pakistan observer dated 29 July, 2012,
reports that “Pakistan lost $18 billion
due to energy crises in the last three years”. How to meet this national
crisis as Government and its concerned machinery are still fast asleep as the
faulty projects of KBD and Akhori Dam proposed by WAPDA show, especially when
the unique multipurpose projects of 35 maf Katzarah Dam, 8.5 maf of Guroh Dop
Dam, Raised Fateh Barrage and Mirkhani Dam as proposed by me since 1990-91 are
rejected by WAPDA and the so called its advisors. Water and Power development
should be free of dirty politics creating infighting.
Status quo for not building mega
dams in time resulted not only in crippling load shedding but in super-flood
devastation of one-fifth of Pakistan
and in water shortage for agriculture, creating insecurity for food
and grounds for famine, hunger and terrorism.
I, after conducting research on “valley
storage”, suggest a unique and multipurpose raised barrage to allow unrestricted
low-level silt sluicing design for hydraulic structure, to store water,
generate power, and evacuate silt. The raised Fateh barrage is an unrestricted
low-level silt sluicing structure, giving free passage to super-floods and to
the evacuation of silt out of the reservoir. The KBD Project consultants did
not agree with 50 days restricted mid-level silt sluicing design suggested by
WAPDA, as silt deposited upstream of Attock gorge would not be evacuated and
that would cause backwater flow in Peshawar valley.
I first gave this suggestion for
the raised Fateh barrage in 1994, when I was Chairman IRSA, 17 years ago. It
went un-noticed as water development was out of vision.
The project conceived is a
combination of a low dam-cum-barrage all confined to the Indus River
The barrage project will not
cause inundation of Peshawar
valley as it allows unrestricted passage to sever flood flows. The
sediment load from a catchment area of 110500 squire miles at this site is 540 million tons, equivalent to 0.3 maf
annually, that will be evacuated.
The project would be acceptable
to the Government of KP and other provinces as it is equally beneficial to all.
However, Sindh and Baluchistan will get assured
water distribution facilities at critical time of crop sowing from the unique
barrage. Punjab and KP will get power royalty
equally. NWFP may irrigate Laki Marwat area. All provinces would get improved
irrigation facilities.
The barrage storage will serve as
balancing reservoir between power
generation and irrigation water conservation. The project can start at once and
completed with in about 3 years. The reservoir will silt up to elevation 800 (crest
of low dam) in four years time if built up to El 860. Storage between elevation700
to 800 feet of about 1.17 maf, is dead storage, and between 800 to 860 is all
time live storage. Only the barrage will be visible on the upstream. The
project would generate hydropower between 2000
MW to 6000 MW on run-of-the-river with Power Houses located on both banks,
that is in NWFP and Punjab both.
The project will be a unique
water regulating and water distributing pivotal structure for IRSA. The cost of
the project would be about $ 2.5 to 3.0 billion dollars. The project would give
breathing time by immense relief to power shortage, flood havoc and water
shortage till four mega dams are built, that is Katzarah, Basha, Raised Fateh
Barrage on the Indus, and Guroh Dop dam on Panjkora River with storage capacity
of 8.5 maf. The fourth dam is at Mirkhani on Chitral River
I wish the Government get the
credit of implementing this unique barrage without loss of time. The
proposed substitute will also cool the craving for KBD, for which the country
suffered unending load shedding, and flood devastation of 22% of Pakistan.
Warning: Because the Raised Fateh Barrage project is unique and
feasible, therefore WAPDA would definitely avoid it, to go for Akhori-another off-channel
controversial and infeasible project, ignoring multipurpose projects on the
main Indus.
Afforestation of mountain range from the Indus River
Lake to mitigate climate change
Another benefit from the raised Fateh
barrage project is that nominal water from the Lake created at the end of the
Indus River valley can be pumped for the afforestation of the mountain range
along both banks of the Indus River in a length of about 90 miles. This is to
mitigate climate change. Similar action can be taken on Tarbela Reservoir for
growing forest on its banks.
Engr. Fateh Ullah Khan
Gandapur
B.Sc. Engg; (Distinction in
Dams & Reservoir Engineering)
M.ASCE (USA
Author of 2 books on
science and Quran. 1. God, Universe & Man; The Holy Quran
& The Hereafter
2. God Created The Universe With The Purpose
To Server Human Kind
Address: H# 30-H2, Main
Road
Copy to;
Secretary Water and Power, Islamabad
Deputy Chairman Planning Commission, Planning
Division, Islamabad
Minister for Water and Power, Islamabad. Deputy
Chairman Planning Planning Commission
Prime Minister of Pakistan and
The President of Pakistan, President House, Islamabad
for information
The delay of 37 years for not
building Basha Dam whose feasibility was completed in 1981, the second dam on
the Indus, after completion of Tarbela in 1974 is a crime against the nation. Adding another 10 years delay for Basha Dam
completion will further aggraravate agonies. No dam, for 47 years would cause a
direct and indirect recurring economic loss of $200 billion per year. So far it
resulted in crippling load shedding, and devastating floods of 2010, water
shortage creating food insecurity, no jobs, rising prices and lawlessness,
creating no source of living. As a consequence some people committed suicide,
and some selling their children. Terror originated due to no job and no ROTI.
Poor governance for the past about 40 years is responsible for corruption.
Justice is costly and late. It should be quick and cheap. I wish some patriotic
Advisors and known experts guide the Prime Minister and the President to
improve things in each profession, and not the sycophants and charlatans
as they misguide them. There is dire need to change laws for good governance
and to develop natural resources of land, water and hydropower for irrigated
agriculture to produce food, secure jobs as provided in the Constitution
Article (38), 38 (a) to (d).
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