Bedti-Varada river link plan triggers fears of eco destruction

The Bedti-Varada river-linking project, which seeks to pump about 524 million cubic metres (mcm) of water from Sirsi in Uttara Kannada to arid regions of Raichur and Koppal districts, has been met with strong opposition from local activists, who said the project will destroy 2,125 acres of forests in the ecologically sensitive parts of Western Ghats.

The project, planned nearly 30 years ago, is being revived by the state government as officials believe that executing the works is easier while diverting a river which doesn’t cross borders of other states.

The cost of the works is estimated at Rs 2,194.29 crore. Thousands of people gathered to protest the project on Tuesday.

As per the detailed project report prepared by the National Water Development Agency (NWDA) recently, the project has two links: The first one involves taking 302 mcm from Pattanadahalla and Shalmalahalla streams of Bedti river to Varada river. The second link will connect Suremane, a barrage of Bedti, with the Varada river to draw 222 mcm of water.

Together, the two links require major tunnels with a total length of about 17 km, besides canals for linking and for taking the water to the faraway regions of Raichur.

The DPR estimates that the project will irrigate 1.06 lakh hectares, of which 21% will grow cotton, followed by paddy (15%), groundnut (15%), jowar (14%) and other crops.

Officials hope that the water pumped from Uttara Kannada will help end the agriculture crisis.

Botanist and conservationist Keshav H Korse said the lack of key studies, including environmental impact assessment for the project, was worrying.

“The one assured result of the project is the catastrophic damage to the environment. So, there is a need to study the feasibility of this project. From my interaction, what I know is that the targeted beneficiaries do not really require water, but better ways to manage their water resources,” he said, adding that farmers in Koppal have complained of increased salinity in water caused by over-irrigation.

A team of experts and activists conducted an independent survey and said a whopping 2,125 acres of forests will be destroyed by the project and not 600 acres as estimated by the DPR.

The wildlife and biodiversity in the sensitive Western Ghats will be affected heavily, said representatives of Vruksha Laksha Andolan, a movement against the project.

Anant Hegde Ashisar of the Andolan said it was high time to study the carrying capacity of the Western Ghats.

“Experts like T V Ramachandra have already pointed out that the ghats can’t take any more change in land use. Also, the project will begin a chain reaction starting from destruction of forest and wildlife habitats, displacement of people and tribals, damage to archaeological sites in Hulgol and long-term effects on fishermen,” he said.

To a question, a senior official in the irrigation department said the DPR will be revised to change the target beneficiaries, before submitting to the NWDA for approval.