The Devendra Fadnavis government has approved two new dam projects in Maharashtra to address the water scarcity in Navi Mumbai, Thane, Kalyan-Dombivli, Panvel, Ulhasnagar, Ambernath, and Badlapur in the Mumbai metropolitan area. These dams will be built in the Karjat taluka of Raigad district, for which the state government has approved Rs 11,263.85 crore. These new dam projects will supplement the water supply to the above cities in the MMRDA region.
The total population of the Mumbai city district and the Mumbai suburban district is around 1 crore. If the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMRDA) area around Mumbai is considered, the population count will increase to around 2.5 crore. While Mumbai city and Mumbai suburbs get their water from several reservoirs, the rest of the areas under MMR do not have sufficient water sources to cope with the surge in population. The state government has decided to build the two dams, taking into account the future need for water in this region. The MMR has been experiencing rapid urbanization and a large influx of population, with an increasing demand for infrastructure. This has led the Cabinet to approve the construction of two new dams in the Raigad district.
Currently, Mumbai is supplied with water from seven dams, namely, Bhatsa, Tansa, Tulsi, Vihar, Madhya Vaitarna, Upper Vaitarna, and Modaksagar. Navi Mumbai is supplied with water from the Morbe dam in Raigad district, which is owned by the Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation. Panvel Municipal Corporation does not have any other source except the Dehrang dam. Panvel city, New Panvel, and Kalamboli areas are supplied with water from the Maharashtra Jeevan Authority. Thane Municipal Corporation is supplied with water from Bhatsa and Barvi dams. The demand for water in Kalyan-Dombivli, Ulhasnagar, Ambernath, and Badlapur will increase in the future.
A dam of 12.344 TMC capacity is to be built on the Poshir River
A dam with a storage capacity of 12.344 TMC will be built on the Poshir River near Kurung village in Karjat taluka. The cabinet approved an administrative cost of Rs 6394.14 crore for this dam. The usable water storage of this proposed project is 9.721 TMC, of which 7.933 TMC of water will be used for domestic uses, and 1.859 TMC of water will be used for industrialization. Notably, the water from this project will be made available for drinking to the people of Navi Mumbai, Ulhasnagar, Ambernath, and Badlapur in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region. So, it has been decided that the capital expenditure for the dam will be shared, based on the water consumption of these cities, and accordingly, the cost of the project has been divided among Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (2,171.45 crore), Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation (2,783.37 crore), Ulhasnagar Municipal Corporation (611.28 crore), Ambernath Municipal Council (452.06 crore) and Badlapur Municipal Council (375.97 crore). This project will be constructed by the Konkan Irrigation Development Corporation.
A 6.61 TMC capacity dam on the Chilhar River
The second dam will be of 6.61 TMC capacity, to be built on the Chilhar River under the Shilar project in Karjat Taluka. The cabinet approved an administrative expenditure of Rs 4869.72 crore for this dam. The water from this dam will be made available for drinking to the people of the cities and towns under Panvel and the Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation. Therefore, the capital expenditure for this dam will be shared based on the water consumption of these areas. The cost of the project has been divided as follows: Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (734.35 crore), Panvel Municipal Corporation (3,672.75 crore), and Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation (462.62 crore). This project will be constructed by the Konkan Irrigation Development Corporation, for which an agreement will be signed between the Konkan Irrigation Development Corporation, the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority, Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation, and Panvel Municipal Corporation.
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