Bhakra Nangal
About Bhakra Dam
The Bhakra Dam may well be termed as an engineering marvel "The hallmark of science and modern
technology". It is virtually the central nervous system of northern India supplying electricity to the entire region helping to run industries, corporate houses etc.
Bhakra combines modern technology and abundant natural beauty. The dam has been constructed across the perennial river Satluj which flows down the Shivalik ranges that surrounds the region. The surroundings are peaceful and ideal for spending a day away from the noisy towns and cities.
The basic tourist facilities are available at Nangal TownShip which is about 13 Kms from Bhakra. The state government run Kadamba Tourist Complex,Nangal, Distt. Ropar is located in the heart of the city. It is surrounded by lush green lawns.
The road leads to Bhakra Dam and NFL(National Fertilizers Limited ) factory.
How to reach
o The nearest airport is Chandigarh (105 km).
o Nangal is on the Delhi-Una line and there is a daily train "Himachal express" on this route.
o Nangal is 20 Kms. from Gurdwara Sri Kesgarh Sahib, Anandpur Sahib
Bhakra Dam
Bhakra Dam is a concrete gravity dam across the Sutlej River and is near the border between Punjab and Himachal Pradesh in northern India.
The dam, located at a gorge near the (now submerged) upstream Bhakra village in Bilaspur district of Himachal Pradesh, which is about 13 km upstream from Nangal townshi, is Asia's second tallest at 225.55 m (740 ft) high next to the 261m Tehri Dam also in India. The length of the dam (measured from the road above it) is 518.25 m; it is 9.1 m broad. Its reservoir, known as the "Gobind Sagar", stores up to 9.34 billion cubic meters of water, enough to drain the whole of Chandigarh, parts of Haryana, Punjab and Delhi. The 90 km long reservoir created by the Bhakra Dam is spread over an area of 168.35 km2. In terms of storage of water, it withholds the second largest reservoir in India, the first being Indira Sagar dam in Madhya Pradesh with capacity of 12.22 billion cu m.
Described as 'New Temple of Resurgent India' by Jawaharlal Nehru, the first prime minister of India, the dam attracts tourists from all over India.
Nangal dam is another dam downstream of Bhakra dam. Sometimes both the dams together are called Bhakra-Nangal dam though they are two separate dams.
History
The Bhakra-Nangal multipurpose dams were among the earliest river valley
Initially, the construction of the dam was started by Sir Louis Dane, the Lieutenant Governor of Punjab. But the project got delayed and was restarted soon after
Independence. In October 1963 at the ceremony to mark the dedication of the Bhakra-Nangal Project to the Nation, Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru said, "This dam has been built with the unrelenting toil of man for the benefit of mankind and therefore is worthy of worship. May you call it a Temple or a Gurdwara or a Mosque, it inspires our
Features
The dam, at 741 ft (226 m), is one of the highest gravity dams in the world (compared to USA's largest Hoover Dam at 743 ft). The 166 km² Gobindsagar Reservoir, named after Guru Gobind Singh, is created by this dam which is the third largest reservoir in India the first being Indira Sagar Dam and second Nagarjunasagar Dam. The river Satluj used to flow through a narrow gorge between two hills, Naina Devi ki dhar and Ramgarh ki dhar, and the site was chosen to dam the river. The map nh-43-03.jpg shows the location of the original Bhakra village that was submerged in the lake formed behind the dam.
It is 15 km from Naya (New) Nangal and 20 km from Sh. Naina Devi.
Usage
The dam was part of the larger multipurpose Bhakra Nangal Project whose aims were to prevent floods in the Sutluj-Beas river valley, to provide irrigation to adjoining states and to provide hydro-electricity. It also became a tourist spot for the tourists during later years because of it huge size and uniqueness.
Irrigation
The dam was constructed with an aim to provide irrigation to Punjab and Himachal Pradesh. Another reason behind the construction of the dam was to prevent damage due to monsoon floods. The dam provides irrigation to 10 million acres (40,000 km²) of fields in Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Haryana, and Rajasthan. It also has four flood gates to control floods.
Electricity generation
Bhakra and Nangal dams house hydroelectric power generators, which are situated on both the sides of the dams. Nangal hydel Channel and Anandpur Sahib Channel are used for power generation and irrigation purposes.
Each power plant consists of five turbines. Two power houses with a total capacity of 1325 MW flank the dam, on either side of the river. The left power house contains 5 x 108 MW Francis turbines while the right 5 x 157 MW.
The power generated at Bhakra Power houses is distributed among partner states of Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh and also supplied to common pool consumers like National Fertilizers Ltd. and Chandigarh.
Tourist destination and attraction
Being the Second highest dam in India, it attracts a large number of tourists who visit its reservoir and attractive location. The distance between the Ganguwal and Bhakra Dam is about 30-35 km.
Bhakra Nangal Dam
A Brief Insight To Bhakra Nangal Dam
Bhakra Nangal Dam is something tremendous, stupendous and something which will shake you up
when you see it. It truly represents the symbol of India’s progress and rightly described as “The
Temple Of Resurgent India” by Pt. Jawaharlal Nehru, the first Prime Minister of Independent India.
It’s one of the biggest multipurpose projects in the world positioned at the close proximity of Nangal
Punjab and Naya Nangal. It is covered by lush green surroundings of Aravalli and Shivalik hills having
diverse flora and fauna to watch out.
Naina Devi
temple is just 8 kms above the dam.
Bhakra Nangal Dam is a 740 Ft. high concrete gravity dam across the SutlejRiver, near the border of
Punjab and Himachal Pradesh in Northern India. It’s counted among the highest dams of Asia. When
it comes to Bhakra Dam tourism, it is a major attraction of tourists from all over the world. It has
huge reservoir that can store up to 9.34 billion cubic of water, which is known as Gobind Sagar. The
reservoir was named after a renowned Sikh Guru Gobind Singh.
Bhakra Nangal project is committed for nation’s development through eco-friendly generation of
electric power from water, better known as hydroelectricity. It has an installed capacity to generate
1478.72 MW of electric power. It’s another major role is to utilize the water of Sutlej for irrigation
purposes in the adjoining areas. Recreation and fishing culture are added advantages. It commands
an area of 10 million acres of land in the states of Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Haryana and Rajasthan.
In 1960, India and Pakistan signed an Indus-water Treaty that resulted in the development of a
master plan to harness the irrigation, power generation and flood control potential of
Bhakra Nangal
Dam
. This has led to the constitution of Bhakra Beas Management Board (BBMB). The spectacular
growth in wheat production in the areas of Punjab, Haryana and Rajasthan can be attributed to this
temple of Resurgent India.
Following projects can be attributed to turn the Bhakra dam as a truly multipurpose project.
Nangal hydel channel
Ganguwal and Kotla power houses on the Nangal hydel channel
Remodelling of Ropar headworks
Remodelling of Sirhind canal
Bhakra canals
Bist Doab canal
Transmission and distribution system of electrical energy
Development of markets and communication of Bhakra area.
Started around 1947, the construction had to be spread over a number of years. In 1946, Sir Louis
Dane commenced the preliminary work in the construction of dam but the project got delayed then.
Soon after independence the construction of dam restarted. The preliminary work like diversion of
river, enclosing the site by making copper dams, excavation up to 190 ft. below the river bed and
finally putting up fully customized concreting plant took 8 years from 1947-1955. Bhakra Nangal
dam was completed by the end of 1963.
In 1963, at the ceremony marked for dedication of Bhakra Nangal project to the nation, Pt.
Jawaharlal Nehru expressed like this “This dam has been built with the unrelenting toil of man for
the benefit of mankind and therefore is worthy of worship. May you call it a Temple, a Gurudwara or
a Mosque, it inspires our admiration and reverence”.
On 22 October 2013 Bhakra Dam is scheduled to complete it’s 50
thanniversary of serving the nation.
Salient features of the Bhakra dam includes
4 spillway radial gates with each gate weighing 102 tons and having dimensions of 50’X 47.5’
The spillway crest level is around 1645 ft. and the gate sill level is around 1642 ft.
