SHILLONG:
The Centre will provide Rs 400 crore under the Dam Rehabilitation and Improvement Project (DRIP) for the Umiam dam.
The project is being funded by the Asian Development Bank (ADB).
Deputy Chief Minister in-charge Power Prestone Tynsong on Monday said that the department had already prepared and submitted the proposal to the Centre.
“We will be getting around Rs 400 crore,” he added. According to him, the project would include taking up desiltation and other rejuvenation works of the Umiam dam and Leshka projects.
Tynsong informed that very soon the government will call for tender for implementation of the DRIP in the state.
In 2019, the Meghalaya Energy Corporation Limited (MeECL) had informed that the life span of the Umiam dam has been reduced by 41 years due to heavy siltation and pollution.
This was revealed by the MeECL officials to the Assembly Committee on Environment headed by Mawphlang legislator SK Sunn during an inspection conducted at the dam.
According to them, the life of the Umiam dam, which was estimated to be 100 years, will end early by 2024 instead of 2065.
It may be mentioned here that studies related to assessment of siltation of the Umïam dam was conducted in 1990 by M/s Water and Power Consultancy Services (Wapcos) and by M/s Tojo Vikas International Private Limited New Delhi in 2004.
Built in the early 1960s, the Umïam dam stores water for hydroelectric power generation and it has also become one of the tourist attractions. It was reported that construction of the Umïam dam was completed in 1965.