Water Resources Department, Government of Gujarat
Online published on 13 January, 2020.
Canals require regular maintenance and repairs during their operational life span. Repairs require identification of problems and strategic devising of solution. When there is some construction flaw like selection of wrong materials or non-compliance with the technical specifications, the canal can not perform as per design and it manifests serious problems during operation. In a large canal named Sujalam Sufalam Canal in Gujarat, which offtakes from the reservoir of the Kadana dam on Mahi river, is more than 300 kilometer long and carries surplus flood water of Mahi river to the arid districts of Gujarat. Its main objective is recharge. Some issues related to defects in the construction had been encountered. Its initial stretch of approximately 27 kilometer length has exhibited some failures. The paper sheds light on what kind of defect was mainly found and how the solution was worked out using geo-mattress. Prima facie irreparable looking canals were restored in a very short period with cost effective, still permanent solutions which prove that geosythetics can effectively address the construction defects in some cases and in some cases can play an important role in restoration of failed canals.
