Prof Shivaji Rao, environmental scientist, warns of severe catastrophe downstream of Polavaram due to any dam break and other threats. Also he mentions large number of villages upstream getting adversely affected over and above what is reported by the AP government as affected areas due to backwater effect. The damage is likely to affect about 369 villages. Magnitude of this nature was estimated by the study conducted by Aranyika (Bharath Bhushan, Murali et al 1992, 1994)
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There are several other dimensions of the Polavaram project that require the work to be stopped immediately.
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Any approvals given by any department to the Polavaram project are null and void as the designs that are taking shape on ground are totally different from the project report that was the basis of these approvals. The current design of Polavaram project pursued by YS Rajashekar Reddy government is in violation of the decades old ‘interstate agreement’ that referred to entirely different project design
Polavaram design was considered highly faulty, at a later stage, by none other than Dr K L Rao himself
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Prof Shivaji Rao’s draws attention to several technical and legal dimensions of the controversial dam that threatens to wipe out downstream districts of Andhra Pradesh
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Bharath Bhushan
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Polavaram is a Killer Dam, says Prof Sivaji Rao
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To save the Bhadrachalam’s most sacred Rama Temple and several tribal villages from submersion by the Polavaram dam which can be made people-friendly by converting it into a barrage the arguments to be advanced by Chattisgarh and Orissa in the Supreme Court are likely to be on the following lines for convincing A.P state to agree for replacement of the Big Dam by a smaller Barrage as previously suggested by Dr. A.N.Khosla, former Governor of Orissa
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1. The states of Orissa and Chattisgarh consider Dr. K.L.Rao, the former Union Minister for Water Resources as an Eminent authority on irrigation projects like big dams. In the case of Polavaram project he made a frank statement (Indian Express news paper from Vijayawada, dated 30-4-1983) that the Polavaram dam is highly under-designed and hence a prescription for disaster. Dr.K.L..Rao ruled out the possibility of diverting surplus Godavari waters to the Krishna owing to defective designing of the Polavaram project only 1800 ft spillway was provided in the Polavaram project to clear 40 lakh cusecs of flood waters in the Godavari as against 13,000 ft long Dowlaiswaram anicut designed by Sir Arthur Cotton. Even Prakasam barrage was [over Krishna River at Vijayawada] designed to 6,280 ft. long though the flood water would not be more than 12 lakh cusecs, Dr.Rao said
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It was simple arithmetic to understand that the Polavaram design would not work, he said.
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2. In the light of these serous technical comments from a very experienced expert Dr.K.L.Rao, the Orissa and Chattisgarh state Governments demand for a revision of the Polavaram project to ensure safety of people in all the states. (ఇంకా…)
