Opinion (Spotlight Weekly)

India's Link Canals And West Seti Dam

By Dr. AB Thapa

At present India’s proposed link canals plan is a subject of considerable debate in Nepal. Various NGOs and similar other institutions have spared no effort and money in holding big meetings in lavish hotels to discuss about the long term adverse effect of such plan on downstream country. Unfortunately none of our NGOs have cared to speak for our own people living in Western Terai who have already started to suffer from flooding caused by the 250 km long Saryu link canal running from west to east parallel to Indo-Nepal border. The alignment of the Saryu canal is only at a short distance from the Indo-Nepal border. The canal is still under construction. The flooding situation in Nepal is sure to worsen to an unbelievable extent once the canal goes in to full operation. The technical details of the Saryu canal had been repeatedly published in several issues of the journal SPOTLIGHT. Those technical details have been presented in a very simplified form that could be easily understood even by those who do not have engineering background. There is no doubt at all that the West Seti Storage Dam Project is the root of the Western Terai submersion problem because the full operation of the Saryu canal is totally dependant on regulated flow from the West Seti storage reservoir. At present Nepal is intending to implement the West Seti Storage Dam Project. It is clear that implementation of the West Seti Project without settling the differences with India over the alignment of the Saryu canal would be a recipe for terrible flood disaster.

Who Is The Culprit?

Now the irony is that while our NGOs, intellectuals, politicians and media are occupied in denouncing the India’s vague plan to link rivers that could have negative impact in the long run on water balance of the downstream country, those organizations are seen to be hardly concerned for the desperate plight of a very large number of our own people in the Western Terai who are already becoming homeless as a result of the construction of the Saryu link canal. The Saryu canal has been planned to draw the regulated flow of the West Seti and the Karnali river. As a result, the activities of our NGOs are helping to create a diversion to draw the attention of the whole country away from the West Seti Project related flood problems. The funniest thing is that it is not India that is pushing hard to implement the West Seti Dam project. Regrettably, our own country is doing its level best to implement the West Seti Project that would result in submersion of a vast area of lands in our Western Terai near the border with India. Nepal has already given green signal to a private developer to implement the West Seti Project without settling the difference with Indian Government over the Western Terai submersion problem. It is most likely that the Saryu canal might have to be realigned if the Nepalese territory is not be adversely affected.

West Seti Dam and Terai Floodings

The Girjapur barrage across the Karnali river is located 1.2 km downstream of the confluence of the channel Girwa and Kauriala and 8.8 km downstream of Katarnia Ghat railway station of North Eastern Railway in India. The site of the barrage is about 16 km from the Nepal border along the River Kaurila.

There are two irrigation canals taking off from the Girjapur barrage . On the left is the Saryu canal running to the east beyond the Banganga river and on the right is the Link Canal connected with the Sarda Sahayak canal planned to irrigate about 2 million ha of lands. At present only the right bank canal is operational because the dry season flow of the Karnali river is quite insufficient for both the canals and there are technical difficulties to utilize the monsoon flow of this river. The year round operation of the Saryu canal depends entirely on availability of the regulated flow from the proposed storage reservoirs in Nepal. The construction of the Saryu canal, that started a long time ago, is still continuing at a snail's pace perhaps due to uncertainty about the date when the West Seti project would be ready for operation. Nevertheless, it appears that the Saryu canal could be made operational at short notice after the completion of the West Seti Storage Project because most of the structures of the Saryu canal might be already ready. After that our people near the border area would be forced to live virtually in swamps throughout the year.

The Saryu canal project consists of a canal network that connects the head regulators of the barrages across the Saryu (Babai river) , West Rapti and Rohini ( Banganga river). A link channel 48.4 km long taking off from the left bank of the Girjapur barrage outfalls into the Saryu river just upstream of a barrage across it. A link canal 56 km long taking off from the left bank of the Saryu river outfalls into the West Rapti river just upstream of the Laxmanpur barrage. Beyond that a 125 km long canal taking off from the left bank of the West Rapti river extends up to the Banganga river.

The total length of the Saryu canal running almost parallel to Indo-Nepal border is about 230 km. In the original design the barrage across the Saryu river was at a location about 328 meters to the south of the railway bridge at Nanpara. Later, the design was modified and the location of the barrage was shifted 10 km to the north from the original site. The longitudinal gradient of the Saryu canal has been reduced to a minimum. It is only one meter on a stretch of 9 km. The adoption of such extremely mild slope permitted the alignment of the canal to be pushed as far as possible to the north very close to Indo-Nepal border specially in its middle and lower reaches.

Normally siphons are provided to deliver canal water across a river which do not hinder the river flow. A much higher average slope of the canal is required for the operation of this type of cross drainage structure, which has to operate under pressurized condition. A free flow hydraulic regime needs to be maintained at the river crossing if the average gradient of the canal is to be reduced. For reducing the average slope of the Saryu canal an altogether a different type of structures has been devised, which at first glance drives anybody crazy. Barrages have been built across the rivers to elevate the river water to such a level that would allow free passage of canal water across the river into the canal taking off from the other side of the river The contentious Laxmanpur barrage is one of such structures devised to deliver the water from the Girjapur barrage across the West Rapti river..

It would be necessary to maintain all the time pond water upstream of the barrage above certain fixed level to keep the Saryu canal running at desired capacity. Thus the pond would always be full, with the result that a sizeable area of lands in Nepalese territory could remain perpetually submerged. When the river is in flood, the water would be spreading out onto the lands that were never before regarded prone to flooding.

The Saryu canal is expected to cross innumerable small rivers and drains on its way. Embankments and dikes are needed to train these drains and small rivers for the protection of the Saryu canal. These river training structures could also result in widespread flooding inside Nepal where the canal route is close to the border

Downstream Irrigation Benefits

After the implementation of the West Seti Project exclusively for power generation we would forfeit for ever an opportunity to share with India downstream benefits accruing to them from the irrigation development in their territory. Thus at present we are on the verge of providing West Seti and Karnali waters to India for free. None of our institutions and NGOs have so far raised any serious objections to it. If the recent reporting of the Indian news media on India’s rivers-linking project is correct, now India appears to be agreeing to buy water delivered from other countries like Nepal for distribution across India. As far as the India’s rivers-linking plan is concerned there is ample justification that the Bangladesh might have to be concerned, as a result they are now raising their voice against it. It should, however, be said with irony that perhaps Nepal should, on the contrary, be even pleased because India is now prepared to pay at least some amount for waters supplied to their rivers linking project despite the fact that we were prepared to provide them regulated West Seti and other river waters for free.

It is not a secret that neither the government nor our NGOs or similar other organizations have ever seriously raised the downstream irrigation benefits issues. Unfortunately we are now mainly concerned about the political side of our water resources development problems virtually shutting our eyes to economic aspects while the developed countries these days are not hesitating to compromise to a certain extent even their sovereignty to gain strong foothold on the economic front.

Economic Agenda At The Top

In recent years there has been a complete turnaround in the thinking of the peoples in the countries all over the world that are developing very fast. Political matters are gradually becoming less important. Economic interest of the countries is gaining upper hand. At present the peoples in Europe are even prepared to sacrifice to a great extent their sovereignty to gain strong foothold on the economic front despite the fact that among such countries on one hand are the monarchies like the United Kingdom, Netherlands, Belgium, Sweden etc and on the other the republics like the France, Germany etc. At the Dutch city of Maastricht in December 1991, two sets of agreements commonly referred to as the Maastricht Treaty, were signed that charted courses toward economic and monetary union (EMU) and European political union (EPU).

The first agreement called for a common European currency by the end of the 1990s. The second Maastricht agreement was even more significant in its implications. It called for common European foreign, defense, and social policies, and for strengthened Community institutions to implement them. Foreign policy would be the responsibility of the European Council of Ministers, supported by its secretariat stationed at Brussels... Having agreed on these new EC roles in 1992, proponents of European federation declared that the Maastricht agreements had finally laid the foundation for a "United States of Europe” Almost there is a similar trend in North America also. Thus these days the developed countries are far more concerned than ever before to protect their economic interest even at the cost of sacrificing some sovereignty. The Columbia River Treaty between the USA and Canada is another type of example to illustrate how the two most friendly neighbouring countries are not prepared to compromise on economic matters..

The Columbia River Treaty

The Progressive Conservatives’ party Prime Minister of Canada John Diefenbaker was a nationalist. He opposed nuclear bases in Canada and the Canada’s role in the NATO. Relations between the USA and Canada had cooled. He took a firm stand on the Columbia River Treaty between the USA and Canada in defense of Canada’s national interest. The Columbia River Treaty was signed at the White House in January of 1961. Over the course of the following summer, the United States Congress held hearings in connection with the Treaty which ultimately led to its ratification. In Canada, the approval process was virtually halted. Canada had realized soon after signing the Treaty at White House that the Columbia River Treaty did not fully protect their economic interests. As a result, Canada was not seen interested to proceed with the ratification of the Treaty until their conditions were met. The Treaty had effectively remained in limbo. Diefenbaker’s government fell in 1963 election contest with the liberals. Soon after, a new government was formed under the leadership of the Prime Minister Pearson who was regarded politically very close to the USA. But he too never compromised on economic matters related to water resources development in dealings with the USA.. Prime Minister Pearson agreed to step in to ratify the Treaty only after his meeting with the US President Kennedy at Hyannis Port. In that meeting it was agreed that the Treaty would be implemented in a way which met the Canada’s concerns.

(Dr. Thapa writes on water resources)