Ensuring dam safety

Extreme weather events have increased risks

With the passage of the long-pending Dam Safety Bill by the Rajya Sabha, the country finally has a reliable and legally mandated institutional mechanism for the upkeep of large dams, many of which are displaying signs of ageing. This measure, passed by the Lok Sabha in 2019, aims essentially at giving the Centre a role in ensuring the physical wellbeing of large dams. The state governments, which own most of these dams and, hence, are responsible for their maintenance, have been opposing this move on the plea that it is an assault on federalism as water is a state subject. However, their track record in looking after the dams is quite uninspiring. This is evident from the high incidence of dam-related mishaps taking a heavy toll on life, property, and infrastructure. There have been well over 40 grave dam failures on record, the latest being the Rishiganga dam in Uttarakhand in February this year, which caused landslides and large-scale devastation.

The proposal for Central legislation on dam protection was mooted way back in the early 1980s in the aftermath of the failure of the Machhu dam in Rajkot in Gujarat. But the Bill drafted for this purpose had to shuttle from one committee to another for scrutiny and recasting. Even after being introduced in Parliament in 2010, it had to go through numerous revisions before it got the nod from both Houses. India, ranked third in the world, next to the US and China, in terms of the number of large dams, badly needed such a law as many of them have surpassed their rated age. Close to 300 of the 5,745 large dams are over 100 years old and more than 1,000 others have crossed 50 years, the threshold after which they require special care. Most of the older dams, being non-concrete structures made of mud and other locally available material, are susceptible to breaches and breaks, especially due to excessive rainfall, earthquakes, and other natural disasters. Increase in the frequency of extreme weather events as a consequence of climate change has exacerbated the threat to these dams. 

This legislation seeks to assist the states in adopting uniform dam safety procedures involving regular surveillance, inspection, operation, and maintenance of all dams more than 15 metres in height. It provides for setting up dam safety committees at the national and state levels to evolve policies and recommend regulations regarding dam protection standards. It also stipulates punishment for violating the rules. What irks states the most about the new law is that it puts the onus of operation, supervision, and repairs of the dams squarely on their owners, which, in most cases, are the state governments. Only a few large dams are constructed and owned by organisations like state hydro-electric corporations. These are, by and large, looked after well. The fresh statute also requires the constitution of dam safety units to inspect the structures before and after the monsoon; after earthquakes, floods, and other calamities; and on the appearance of any signs of distress. These units would also be responsible for carrying out risk assessment studies and preparing emergency action plans in consultation with technical experts. However, now that the law has been enacted, overcoming resistance from the states, its enforcement should not be delayed any further.