Mandi, August 03: Following the cloudburst, two gates of the Pandoh dam have been jammed with silt, leading to a serious crisis in dam operations. The blockage has halted power generation and disrupted a range of operations. For the past three days, officials have been struggling to deal with the silt build-up that has led to the gates being closed and the Baggi tunnel, a crucial part of the system, being shut down.
The jammed gates have led to the closure of the Baggi tunnel, leading to a complete halt in power generation at the Salapad power house since last night. BBMB Chairman Manoj Tripathi, along with a technical team from Chandigarh, has reached the spot to monitor and expedite the desilting process.
Efforts are still underway to desilt the gates, but the task remains challenging. The water level of the Beas river is currently low, providing an opportunity for the cleaning operation. However, the threat looms with the weather department’s warning about possible heavy rains or cloudbursts in the Kullu-Manali region. Such weather events can worsen the situation by increasing the water level in the dam, potentially causing considerable damage.
Apart from the silt problem, the Baggi tunnel site is filled with wood, further complicating efforts to release water through the tunnel. The inability to clear these blockages has led to the suspension of the 990 MW Beas Sutlej Link (BSL) project for the last three days.
BBMB Chairman Manoj Tripathi has camped at Pandoh to personally monitor the situation and ensure that all possible measures are taken to resolve the crisis immediately. The arrival of the technical team from Chandigarh underlines the gravity of the situation and the urgency of the BBMB to address the problem.
The incident highlights the vulnerability of critical infrastructure to natural elements and the importance of maintenance and monitoring of these systems to prevent such disruptions. The outcome of the ongoing efforts to clear the silt and resume operations is yet to be seen, but the situation is being closely monitored by officials and residents.
The disruption at the Pandoh dam underscores the wider concern about the maintenance and resilience of dam infrastructure in the face of natural challenges. With the increasing unpredictability of weather patterns, such events may occur more frequently, necessitating robust contingency plans and regular maintenance programmes to ensure the smooth functioning of critical infrastructure.
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