CWPRS, Pune agrees to prepare feasibility report for Udupi Marina project 

UDUPI: The much touted Marina project proposed near Dariya Bahadurgad landmass off Padukere beach here received a boost with Central Water and Power Research Station (CWPRS), Pune agreeing to prepare a feasibility report. 

In a communique to the secretary of Mangaluru based coastal development authority, CWPRS while indicating that the study will be carried out in five phases, stated preliminary estimate for the study will be around Rs 85-lakh. 

CWPRS scientists in the communique stated that the studies that will be carried out are mathematical model studies for wave tranquillity, for shoreline changes, for hydrodynamics and sedimentation as well as desk and wave flume studies for the design of breakwater and field data collection and analysis – all for the development of the Marina. Incidentally, the authority has earmarked Rs 1 crore for the proposed feasibility report. [Readmore]

Andhra Pradesh: PPA intensifies efforts for approval of pending designs of Polavaram head works 

Polavaram Project Authority (PPA), Water Resources Department officials have paid special attention to complete the Polavaram project by the deadline and making efforts to expedite the approval of 30 pending designs for the construction of the reservoir from the CWC. The studying the design. A team of PPA officials is going to Pune on Monday to look into the study and send the design to the CWC. 

The DDRP (Dam Design Review Panel) will hold a meeting at the Polavaram project and the contractor (agency), the State Water Resources Department, will approve the designs pending with the CWPRS and send them to the CWC. The government aims to complete the project within the stipulated deadline by approving the pending designs by February. It is learned that CM YS Jagan Mohan Reddy, who inspected the works of the Polavaram project at the field level on December 14, directed the authorities to approve the pending designs by February and complete the project strategically by 2022 kharif. [Readmore]

India-China Hydropower Battle: Who Will Win?

Despite these concerns, India has a lot of potential when it comes to renewables, especially hydropower. As per the Centre for Science and Environment, the North East has the potential to switch to 100% renewable.

The year 2020 saw multiple instances of standoff between China and India, primarily in the Leh-Laddakh region. The two countries have had a stream of differences on border issues, including the North East, particularly in Arunachal Pradesh. There is speculation that the fight now has gone beyond the actual battlefield to energy infrastructure and water supply, with hydropower at the forefront.

Recently, China announced it is working on a massive hydropower project as a part of its 14th Five Year Plan (2021-25) in Medog county of Tibet. In the last week of November 2020, the president of Power Construction Corporation of China, which is a Chinese government-owned company, announced plans to develop a hydroelectric project of mammoth proportions of up to 60 Gigawatts (GW). This project will be executed on the lower reaches of the Yarlung Zangbo river, commonly known as the Brahmaputra river in India.[Readmore]

Polavaram Hydro Electric Project, Andhra Pradesh

Polavaram hydroelectric project (PHEP), also known as Indira Sagar project, is a 960MW multi-purpose project being constructed on the Godavari River near Polavaram village in the East Godavari and West Godavari districts of Andhra Pradesh, India.

Polavaram hydroelectric project (PHEP), also known as Indira Sagar project, is a 960MW multi-purpose project being constructed on the Godavari River near Polavaram village in the East Godavari and West Godavari districts of Andhra Pradesh, India.[Read More]

Seven check dams to be constructed across River Bhavani

Seven check dams that will help recharge groundwater and also ensure that surplus water is optimally used will be constructed across River Bhavani from Bhavani Sagar to Kalingarayan Anicut at ₹ 79.82 crore.

Water released from the dam into the river is used for irrigation purposes and also helps in recharge of wells and borewells. When the dam attains its full reservoir level of 105 feet, surplus water is released into the river that finally enters River Cauvery. Hence, there is a long-pending demand from the farmers and people for constructing check dams so that the water is stored and used during summer.[ReadMore]

Explained: On Nile, a Grand Dam divides African nations

The long-standing dispute has been a cause of concern for international observers who fear that it may increase conflict between the two nations and spill out into other countries in the Horn of Africa.

The Blue Nile flows downstream towards Sudan as cement trucks sit parked in the foreground at the site of the under-construction Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam in the Benishangul-Gumuz Region of Ethiopia, on Wednesday, May 22, 2019. (Bloomberg Photo: Zacharias Abubeker)

Ethiopia, Sudan and Egypt agreed on Sunday to resume negotiations to resolve their decade-long complex dispute over the Grand Renaissance Dam hydropower project in the Horn of Africa. The latest round of talks comes six weeks after Sudan had boycotted the ongoing negotiations.[Readmore]

National Mission for Clean Ganga completes 22 projects & sanctions 17 new projects amounting to Rs. 557.83 crores

Implementation of Coastal Management Information System (CMIS) at 2 sites, one each in Maharashtra (northern region) and Gujarat (southern region) has been awarded to CWPRS, Pune and a tripartite MoU has been signed among CWC, CWPRS and respective States (Gujarat and Maharashtra). Establishment of two no. of coastal data collection sites (Satpati-Maharashtra, NanidantiMotidanti-Gujarat) is in progress under this project.

Implementation of CMIS at 3 sites, 2 in Goa and 1 in Southern Maharashtra, work has been awarded to NIO, Goa and a tripartite MoU has been signed among CWC, NIO and respective States (Goa and Maharashtra). Establishment of three no. of coastal data collection sites (Tarkhali-Maharashtra, Benaulium-Goa, Baga-Goa) is in progress under this project.[Readmore]