Sapta Koshi High Dam Multipurpose Project

KATHMANDU, DEC 25 -

Nepal and India have agreed to extend the deadline for feasibility study of the Sapta Koshi High Dam Multipurpose Project by two years.

A two-day meeting of the joint team of experts (JTE) that ended on Monday also decided to start the stalled study at the earliest. The existing deadline is expiring on February 2013. “The two sides have agreed to extend the deadline to February 2015,” said Anup Upadhaya, director general of the Department of Electricity Development, who led the Nepali side.

This is the fifth time that the deadline has been extended. A Joint Ministerial Commission on Water Resources (JMCWR) held last year in New Delhi had made the fourth extension until February 2013.

As per the new agreement, the Joint Project Office (JPO) assigned to conduct the study will complete the job within the next two years and draw a work-plan and estimate the cost for the detailed project report (DPR) by February 2013. The JPO was set up in 2004 in Biratnagar to carry out pre-feasibility study.

The feasibility study consists of topological, geological and seismological surveys and drillings across the project site and an Environment Impact Assessment (EIA).

During the meeting, Nepali officials assured the Indian side that they would convince the locals who are against the project and begin the stalled study again. The Nepal government would brief the locals about the merits and demerits of the project and provide security to the staff involved in the feasibility study.

The locals along with the leaders of a few political parties have been opposing the construction of the project, saying the project, situated in poor geographical location, would cause flood on the Nepali territory. The dam is likely to affect at least 82 villages located 500ft above sea level.

The drilling for geological survey has been stalled for a long, while other surveys are also moving at a slow pace. As per the agreement, the JPO will select consultants for EIA.

The ambitious multi-billion-dollar project will include irrigation facilities, a flood control system, power generation of 3,000MW and a 269-metre high concrete or rock-filled dam. The proposed dam will be constructed roughly 2.6km north of Chatara, Sunsari.

Source: The Kathmandu Post