Bhakra Beas Management Board, Chandigarh
Bhakra Nangal Project, the first major multi-purpose river valley project of free India, is a unique project in many ways. The most outstanding feature of the project is that the benefits of increased irrigation and power started accruing much ahead of the completion of Bhakra Dam in 1963, as the Nangal Dam and the canal system were completed by 1954 and the power generation at Ganguwal and Katla had started in 1955 and 1956 respectively. This speaks volumes of the caliber and vision of the planners of the project. On Bin July 2004, Nangal Hydel Channel completes 50 glorious years of continuous service to the Nation without any major mishap or closure and can be rightly called ‘Crowning Glory’ of Bhakra Nangal Project.
Nangal Hydel Channel has a remarkable contribution in socio-economic development of this region. Needless to say, Punjab and Haryana, the major contributors to the central pool of food grains, always had agriculture as the backbone of economy. Though the lands in this part of the Indus basin were fertile yet the agriculture got a fillip only when water and power were made available by this canal. Moreover, transformation of agriculture from rainfed irrigation to dependable canal irrigation and availability of cheap power also brought about a tremendous growth of industrial sector. Thus, Nangal Hydel Channel can be truly called harbinger of Green, White and Industrial revolutions in Northern India.
An attempt has been made in this article on Nangal Hydel Channel to bring out its salient features, O&M practices being adopted, challenges faced in continuous running of the canal, socia-economic impacts and suggestions for ensuring its running for many more decades. It is hoped that lessons learnt and experiences gained from successful running of Nangal Hydel and Channel continuously for the last 50 years wif/be of immense utility to the engineers engaged on the operation and maintenance of similar canals all over the world.
