1Associate Director & Head, Water and Environment, Jacobs, India
2Technical Director, Ground Engineering, Jacobs, UK
3Senior. Engineer, Water and Environment, Jacobs, India
Online published on 27 April, 2023.
Kishanganga is the first mega hydropower plant located in the north western Himalayas, in the Gurez valley of Kashmir region of India. The Concrete Faced Rockfill Dam at an altitude of about 2400m, has a height of 33m and a crest length of 145m. The concrete face is tied to a 31m deep plastic concrete cut-off wall. Construction in the remote and mountainous terrain of Kashmir where the temperature drops below freezing for 4 months of each year, provides its own challenges. In addition, with few CFRD dams constructed in India, developing the trust and confidence of the owners and local community, was-key to successful completion. The rock mass comprises fractured Panjal Volcanics and the abutments-required investigations to assess joint shear strength parameters to allow assessment of stability and adaptation of rock slope design. A deep cut off wall in front of the dam made up of plastic concrete has been constructed using borehole drill and blast method to economize the cost and construction time-with locally available technology. This paper presents the challenges and the solutions developed during-the design and construction of the dam and in particular, the right bank plinth, extruded kerb, rock slope stabilization, face slab joints and cutoff wall.
