Environment Ministry puts riders on de-siltation at dams in Kandi area
The Forest Advisory Committee (FAC) of the Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change has placed conditions on the state’s Water Resources Department for the de-siltation of 13 dams located in the Kandi forest regions of Hoshiarpur and Mohali districts.
The dams, built nearly 35 years ago with the World Bank support, have seen significant silt accumulation, reducing their water-carrying capacity to less than 50% in most cases, according to department officials.
The Water Resources Department has been directed to submit a mining proposal and an undertaking to deposit the net present value (NPV) of the dam areas, as the de-siltation process has been classified as a re-diversion of land. Additionally, the extracted silt is proposed for use in national highway projects, further complicating the issue as it now requires environmental clearance under National Green Tribunal (NGT) guidelines.
The area of the reservoirs spans about 2,000 hectares, and the accumulated silt has made the regions downstream of the dams vulnerable to floods. Last year, flash floods breached a check dam near Choti-Badi Naggal in Kharar, Mohali, causing widespread damage. Officials emphasised the urgency of obtaining the necessary no-objection certificate (NOC) from the Forest Department to prevent further incidents. The reduced water capacity also impacted wildlife last summer, with Perch Dam in Mohali drying up.
Punjab’s Principal Chief Conservator of Forests, RK Mishra, confirmed that for the de-siltation to proceed, the department must comply with these requirements, including the submission of the NPV for the land in question.
