NMMC starts feasibility study on dams

NAVI MUMBAI: With the rapid development of Navi Mumbai, the municipal corporation is taking measures to ensure that the water supply meets the demands of a growing population. The Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation (NMMC) has begun feasibility studies on two dams.

The city’s current population is estimated at 1.85 million people, for whom 450 megaliters per day (mld) of water is supplied from the Morbe Dam, its single, self-sufficient source. Kailas Shinde, municipal commissioner, said that by 2047, an estimated 1200 mld of water will be required.

The civic body has appointed Tata Consulting Engineers Ltd to study the technical and economic feasibility of the proposed Poshir dam and Shilar dam projects. Both these dams are proposed in the Karjat area of Raigad district across the Poshir and Shilar rivers in the Ulhas basin.

“NMMC has initiated measures and studies to create new water sources. We intend to source the water flowing from the Patalganga river and supplying that water to the city,” said Shinde.

The civic body had recently submitted proposals to embank Patalganga river to ensure Morbe dam is replete with continuous use. It had also sought to source water released from Bhira dam at Kundalika river. Bhira Hydroelectric Power Station is located over 100km from Navi Mumbai in Kolad. Bhira Hydroelectric Power Station, or Tata Powerhouse Dam, is located over 100km from Navi Mumbai in Kolad. Water from here is used for irrigation and power generation, and 800 mld flows into the Amba and Kundalika rivers.