Author: Abhishek Singh

The world’s first Arch Dam- ‘Glanum Dam’, was located on the south west of the French town of Saint-Reme-de-Provence. The dam was also called as ‘Vallon de Baume Dam’ and was built around 1st century BCE to supply water to the ancient Roman town of Glanum. The location of the dam at a narrow gorge (The Gorge of Peyrou) between the hills of Les Alpilles provided an ideal location for the construction of an Arch Dam. Though the dam was damaged during the construction of a modern dam at same place in 1891; it is established beyond doubt that the Glanum Dam was the first ever known dam of its kind. Location of the Glanum Dam The site of the Glanum Dam is located at a distance of 1 km south of the town of Saint-Reme-de-Provence in south west France. The dam was built on a narrow gorge called the Gorge of Peyrou, that cuts through the hills of Les Alpilles; a small range of low mountains in southern France. The town of Saint-Reme-de-Provence is north to the Alpilles and to the Glanum Dam’s site; and both are almost at an approximate distance of 20 km (12 miles) from the Avignon town. Avignon has an airport and is well connected with Saint-Reme by roads and highways. Details of the Dam The Glanum Dam is known to be the oldest...

The world’s largest hydroelectric power generation dam lies in a prefecture level city of ‘Yichang’ in the ‘Yiling’ district in central China province of Hubei. The dam is built across the Yangtze River in the town of Sandouping. A prefecture level city is administrative head quarter ranking below a province and above a county. The name of the dam across the Yangtze River is ‘Three Gorges Dam’ and it is the world’s largest hydroelectric power generation station as per total installed capacity. ‘Three Gorges’ is a term referring to three adjacent gorges in the middle reaches of Yangtze River. The total installed capacity of the dam is 22,500 MW and it also serves the purpose of improving navigation as well as containing flood downstream by storing water. ‘Three Gorges Dam’ is regarded as a monument of both national as well as social importance in China; it is also weighed as a proof of China’s advancements in the field of engineering, as it uses exceptionally large turbines and is also constructed to have minimum green house gas emission. Despite the advantages the dam has also remained controversial both in China as well as other parts of the world, as it was built flooding an archeological site and displacing approx. 1.3 million people; it is also blamed for causing ecological imbalances resulting in landslides. Location of the ‘Three Gorges Dam’ The...

Idukki Arch Dam in the southern Indian state of Kerala is the first of its kind in Asia. It is a Double Curvature Arch Dam impounding Periyar River at a narrow gorge between two granite hills in Idukki, Kerala. In a layman’s explanation – a double curvature arch dam is a dam which is curved both horizontally and vertically towards the upstream i.e. towards the source. Such type of dams are thinner than ‘earth filled’ or ‘masonry’ dams and are also economical as they require less amount of concrete. They are suitable for narrow gorges as the hydrostatic pressure of the water pressing against its curved surface; strengthens its structure. The dam is constructed and owned by the ‘Kerala State Electricity Board’ and the water stored by the Idukki curved dam as well as two other dams; Cheruthoni- a Concrete Gravity Dam and Kulamavu- a Gravity/Masonry Dam is used by the Hydroelectric Power Station at Moolamattom (780 MW), which is an underground power station located inside a cave. The approximate distance between the Idukki Arch Dam and the Hydro Power Station at Moolamattom is 43 km and the water from the dam to the station is carried by underground pipes. Location of Idukki Arch Dam Idukki Arch Dam is constructed on a narrow gorge also known as the Idukki gorge between two granite hills – Kuravanmala (839 ft) and...

The first multipurpose dam in India is Tilaiya Dam. It was built across Barakar River in the Indian state of Jharkhand. Barakar is a main tributary of Damodar River; latter was also known as the ‘Sorrow of India’ due to its regular devastating floods. The First Multipurpose River Valley Project of Independent India The Dam was the first among four multipurpose Dams constructed in the Damodar valley by Damodar Valley Corporation, primarily to contain floods and also for generating electricity and promoting agriculture. Tilaiya dam is a concrete gravity dam with a height of 30.28 meters (99.3 ft) and a length of 366 meters (1201 ft). Location of Talaiya Dam Tilaiya Dam is located around 64 Km downstream and in the upper reaches of Barakar river which originates in Hazaribagh district of Jharkhand. The Dam is located in the Koderma District of Jharkhand and is easily accessible by road and rail transport. The dam is approximately 16 km from Koderma railway station and around 400 Km from Kolkata. The main Patna-Ranch road passes through near the Dam. The Need of Talaiya Dam Rising in the Palamau Hills Chota Nagpur region of Jharkhand the Damodar River flows through the states of Jharkhand and West Bengal. Damodar river valley has a drainage area of 22005 sq km and receives an annual rainfall of 1400 mm especially in the Chota Nagpur Region...

First Dam in India Kallanai Dam (Grand Anicut) is the oldest dam (first dam) in India. Dams are barriers built across rivers to restrain the flow of water and this water confinement helps to stop the natural course of river and directs the water to a different place. In earlier times, dams were built for the development and human purposes which included: 1) To solve irrigation issues across various states of India 2) Generation of hydroelectricity 3) To regulate flooding With the evolution of society, significance of dams has decreased as they are now considered to be responsible for environmental degradation and societal destruction. They are no more regarded as symbols of progress and growth rather are criticized as causing displacement and rehabilitation. The Kaveri River rises from Kodagu in Western Ghats in Karnataka and flows to the Bay of Bengal with certain drainage area residing in the state of Tamil Nadu. During the peak of monsoon season, river Kaveri gets flooded which swamps large areas creating number of problems and difficulties for the local people. Kallanai Dam also referred to as Grand Anicut is the diversion dam constructed to restrict the natural flow of Kaveri River. It is regarded as the oldest dam in India which is still in use and saved the people residing in surrounding areas from the furies of flood created by an excessive flow...