Civil society experts worried over dumping of excavated shoals and sand in river bed
Cuttack: Civil society organizations in Cuttack city have expressed concern at the manner in which an Orissa high court order is being given the go-by and vast tracts of the Mahanadi riverbed here are being filled up with shoal and sand being removed from the Mahanadi Barrage pond.
The organizations said the dumping of the excavated shoal and sand over a large stretch of the riverbed, extending to some kilometres upstream of the barrage, would make Cuttack vulnerable to floods during high tide in the Mahanadi.
On February 27, 2012, the Orissa high court had issued a set of directives while allowing the drawing of water from the Mahanadi here for supply to the Indian Oil Corporation Limited (IOCL)’s refinery in Paradip. One of the directives mandated removal of shoal in the barrage pond and a thorough dredging of the reservoir at the cost of the IOCL. Work on the project began months ago and is expected to be completed by June 2021.
Mahanagar Nagarika Mancha convener Chittaranjan Mohanty said huge stretches of the riverbed had been filled up with the excavated shoal and sand in violation of the high court order. “While giving the directive, the high court had specified that the usable earth from the dredging should be used for strengthening and widening the embankment (ring) road along the right bank of the river, upstream of the barrage at Jobra. The unusable earth was to be also used to fill up low-lying areas nearby,” Mohanty said.
Sampurna Kranti Abhijan (Odisha) president Sisir Das said the dredging of the barrage reservoir was aimed to increase its water retention capacity. “Dumping of the removed shoal and sand in the riverbed upstream would make the exercise futile. It will decrease the water retention capacity of the barrage,” Das said.
Mahanadi barrage division officials, however, said the dredging of the reservoir and removal of shoal and sand from the pond were being undertaken as per the bathometric survey done through IIT Chennai.