Unabated sand mining caused 2019 Malaprabha flooding: Report

Sand mining in the catchment area and the consequent river bed flattening was directly responsible for the August 2019 floods in the Malaprabha basins a report by a technical expert has said, recommending urgent measures to prevent recurrence of the incidents that damaged houses and crops in Belagavi and Bagalkot districts.

Sudhir Sajjan, technical assistant to Managing Director of Krishna Bhagya Jala Nigam Limited, has come up with the report ‘The flood phenomena at the Malaprabha basin’ after studying the changes in the basin of the river, a major tributary of River Krishna.

By the end of 2019, the state government estimated the total damage caused by the floods at Rs 35,160.81 crore. Of this, Bagalkot suffered damages to the tune of Rs 3,653.63 crore while damages in Belagavi pegged at Rs 17,863 crore.

“It is undoubtedly the spurt in the mining activity in the catchment area, which is the root cause for recurring floods in the river,” the report said, meticulously mapping the fields ravaged by sand mining along the river course, starting from areas near Manasapur to Khanapur, Yellur and Bailhongal.

Speaking to DH, Sajjan said the mining has effected a change in the land use which meant a high amount of soil was being carried to the river basin. “This is a situation very typical to Malaprabha.

“Induced meandering leading to soil mass movement has in turn led to sheet flooding where the water level is not deep but enough to cause damage to lands and change direction, away from the course,” he explained.

The report also said that many of the 32 bandharas (diversionary weirs) constructed across the river were “the most unscientific structures.’’ “The one built between the hillocks near the Ramalingashwar temple caused huge impounding during the flooding of August 2019,” he said, noting that the choking of the weirs during the floods exacerbated the situation.

The report particularly pointed at four structures - check dam near Ramdurg, bandharas near Shivayogi Mandir, Ramalingeshwar temple and a new bridge on NH 50 near Belagal - that unleashed a rippling effect in August 2019.

“Just their absence or their scientific planning would have reduced (flood) intensity by 50%,” it said.

The report made 11 structural recommendations and three key recommendations regarding desilting of the river bed, desilting reservoir and not to construct the newly proposed bridges unless they cover the total width of the river during the peak flow level. “Unless these are implemented, there is no doubt that the floods will recur,” he said.