Opinion (Spotlight Weekly)

Melamchi Project And Planning Commission

By AB Thapa

Water resources sector is in disarray. Projects carrying great significance to national economy are being handled without due care. A carefully planned Melamchi project could work miracle for our country. The whole country could be benefited from electricity supply at a price perhaps the cheapest in our region, while the Kathmandu residents could get Melamchi water for free. Unfortunately such opportunity would be missed for ever if the Melamchi project in its present form is allowed to be implemented.

It need not be explained that the National Planning Commission, apart from being the supreme body in charge of providing guidelines on development policy, would have to be equally responsible to bring about proper coordination of activities within the jurisdiction of various government ministries and departments. Water resources is a sector that involves more than one ministry, as a result, this sector requires coordination of works of various concerned government agencies. Unfortunately, we find in Nepal that in most of the cases such coordination is virtually nonexistent.

There is one even far serious cause for concern. Many government agencies are often seen to be quite indifferent to the threats emanating from the lack of proper project analysis which could ruin the prospect for arriving at a satisfactory solution to various water resources related problems. As a result, very recently Nepalís power sector has been very badly affected and the people of Nepal are forced to buy electricity at the price perhaps the highest in our region. The Melamchi water supply project would be the next casualty if the National Planning Commission and other relevant organizations failed to intervene in time.

R&D and National Plan

Any country attempting steady growth of its economy cannot but go in for research in science and technology and Nepal could not be an exception to this. There is no denying the fact that countries all over the world are currently engaged in fierce fights in the economic front instead of battlefields. They are seen doing their utmost to find new ways to gain ground against their competitors. For this purpose even developing countries like ours are providing all-out support to encourage and promote new research in complicated areas of science and technology to enhance economic growth and development. Thus, it is necessary even for small countries like ours to make investment in R&D to find the most appropriate solutions to various science and technology related problems that face the national development plans. As far as the developed countries are concerned they are seen spending a very large sum on R&D. Some years before the USA, Japan, Germany and Switzerland were seen spending on R&D 2.7, 2.5, 2.3 and 2.3 percentages respectively of their GNP.

Unfortunately, we have not yet realized the role of science and technology in our national planning. Thus, it does not surprise anyone to learn that our country is not yet seen to be truly interested to rationalize our national plans based on R&D findings. It nevertheless hurts the feelings of anybody the most when the concerned government agencies try to push their plans that flies in the face of common sense, despite the fact that the government had far better other options. The Melamchi water supply project could be one of such typical cases. A short description highlighting few issues related to this project is presented hereinafter. Fortunately it is not yet too late to rectify the Melamchi project mistakes. It is hoped that the Planning Commission and other relevant government agencies would take up this matter seriously.

Why Yangri and Larke Were Leased Out?

It is said that the Melamchi project now considered for the implementation significantly differs from the project originally proposed by the team of foreign consultants assigned by the UNDP The UNDP supported report explains that around the time 2011 the total system demand for water supply ( in Kathmandu valley) is expected to reach the total supply from in-valley surface sources and Melamchi. Thereafter the next stage of the development of the Melamchi will be required. This entails diversion from the YANGRI and LARKE rivers that flow to the east of the Melamchi. Water would be diverted by tunnels to a point upstream of the Melamchi intake. The total length of the delivery tunnels is expected to be over 12 kilometers. The Larke and the Yangri are the main tributaries of the Indrawati River. After the diversion of the Yangri and Larke rivers into the Melamchi there would hardy be any flow in the upper reach of the Indrawati River during the dry season.

It saddens any common Nepalese who has the slightest care for the country to learn that the Indrawati River has been recently leased out to private developers to build a cascade of hydropower in all probability with the consent of the National Planning Commission. One hydropower is going to be completed very soon and the others are at planning stage. Concerned agencies at the policy making level and the Planning Commission should be able to explain the rational behind the decision to lease the Indrawati River to private developers to build a cascade of hydropower. Could not we find some other suitable rivers any where in Nepal to be leased out to private hydropower developers?

Why Hydropower Component was Dropped?

There exists a big potential to generate cheap electricity by using the diverted flow of the Melamchi River The elevation of the Melamchi intake weir is 1715 m and the inlet to the treatment works near Sundarijal is 1409 m. Thus there is an enormously big gross head of 306 m. The UNDP report has clearly stated that the net increment in investment (the cost of the powerhouse located near Sundarijal with electromechanical equipment) needed to implement the hydropower element is relatively small as the intake headrace tunnel and penstock are already in place for conveying water to the treatment works. According to the feasibility report of the Arun-3 Project operating at a head of about 300 meters ( same as the Melamchi Hydropower ) the cost of electromechanical equipments and power station civil works is only about 30% of the total project cost. The UNDP study has concluded that it would be worth constructing the hydropower and it could make a contribution to reducing the cost of drinking water to Kathmandu. The UNDP report explains that even before the diversion of the Yangri and Larke rivers the total annual generation of the Melamchi hydropower would be 60 GWh and out of it the firm power generation would be 40.5 GWh. The Melamchi hydroelectricity generation would have been close to 50% of the annual generation of the Kulekhani No.1 hydropower project. After the diversion of the Yangri and Larke the electricity generation of the Melamchi hydropower plant would be further increased. It surprises anyone to learn that the Melamchi hydropower component has been dropped. The Planning Commission should seriously look into this matter to find out why the power component of the Melamchi project was allowed to be dropped despite the fact that the UNDP report has concluded that the power station would be worth constructing and could make a contribution to reducing the cost of drinking water to Kathmandu residents. It is still not too late to reintroduce the hydropower component if we did not find satisfactory justification for the hydropower component to be dropped.

A New Opportunity

The way the Melamchi project has been planned clearly shows that the planners of this project were unfamiliar with the water resources potential of the Melamchi River. A Melamchi project conceived primarily as a power project linked with the existing Kulekhani hydropowers acutely suffering from water shortages and also with the Langtang projects could provide Kathmandu people water almost for free A Melamchi project exclusively for water supply is obviously very expensive. The project involves the construction of a 28 km long delivery tunnel. Thus, the Melamchi tunnel is too long. Apart from it, the tunnel size adopted based on the construction requirement is also very big for a scanty dry season flow of only about 1.5 cu. m/sec. The proposed tunnel could be used as a transit route for the passage of surplus Melamchi and Langtang waters into the Kulekhani storage reservoir acutely suffering from water shortage.

After the Langtang diversion the Melamchi tunnel could be expected to run in full capacity of about 15 cumecs throughout the year. It would permit a 35 MW Melamchi tunnel hydropower operating at a head of about 300 meters to generate annually up to 300 GWh firm electric energy, which would be 50% more than the electricity generation of the both Kulekhani No-1 and No-2 hydropower stations put together. After the diversion of the Langtang into the Melamchi, it would not be necessary for augmenting the dry season flow of the Melamchi to divert the Yangri and Larke rivers which have already been leased out to private developers for the generation of electricity. It would also be possible to set aside a large proportion of the dry season flow of the Melamchi river for the use of the local people. As a result, the future supply of Melamchi water to the local inhabitants would not have to be unduly restricted.

NPC Should Quickly Act

At present the Nepal Electricity Authority is also interested to divert the Langtang water for the generation of electricity. Unfortunately, they are conducting a study to discharge the Langtang flow after power generation into the Trisuli River, despite the fact that the cost and benefit to NEA from such diversion into the Melamchi would also have been very much the same. However, neither the NEA nor the Water Supply Agency have any appetite to work together. The National Planning Commission should immediately intervene to fulfill its duty to coordinate the works being carried out under different government agencies in the interest of the country as a whole.