Sardar Sarovar: Prime Minister Modi Inaugurates World’s Second Biggest Dam In Gujarat 

Ahmedabad: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday inaugurated the world's second biggest dam -- Sardar Sarovar Dam -- described as Gujarat's lifeline by Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders.

The foundation stone of the dam was laid on April 5, 1961 by the country's first prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru. It took 56 years to complete its construction amid protests and controversies from various sections of society against the displacement of villages en-route the dam in Madhya Pradesh.

Sardar Sarovar Dam, which is going to benefit lakhs of farmers in the state was dedicated to the nation.

The inauguration of the dam coincides with Modi's 67th birthday. The closing ceremony of the event addressed as the Narmada Mahotsav will take place in the end, to celebrate completion of the work.

Modi will also address a public meeting at Dabhoi, following the inauguration.

His visit, which has added significance as the Assembly elections are due in Gujarat by year-end, is the second in less than a week after he hosted Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in Ahmedabad and launched the Bullet train project.

The delay in the completion of the dam was due to numerous reasons. Medha Patkar-led Narmada Bachao Andolan took the government to the Supreme Court over environmental and rehabilitation issues, and obtained a stay in 1996.

The court allowed resumption of work in October 2000.

The height of the dam was recently raised to 138.68 metres, which will allow maximum 'usable storage' of 4.73 million acre feet of water.

After the inauguration, Modi will travel to Sadhu Bet, an island in the Narmada river, where he will take stock of the 'Statue of Unity' project.

The 'Statue of Unity' is a 182-metre tall statue of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, dedicated to the country's first home minister.

Modi will lay foundation stone for National Tribal Freedom Fighters' Museum during the event.

Modi will then visit Amreli in Saurashtra where he will attend a host of programs and address a public gathering.

Meanwhile, the Gujarat Congress has claimed that the project is not complete and canals of 43,000 km length were yet to be built despite the BJP ruling the state for 22 years.

Sardar Sarovar Dam Facts

Sardar Sarovar project is the biggest dam in the world after the Grand Coulee Dam in the United States.

The Sardar Sarovar Dam has two power houses - river bed power house and canal head powerhouse. The two powerhouses have the installed capacity of 1,200 MW and 250 MW respectively.

The dam has so far produced 4,141 crore units of electricity.

Sardar Sarovar Dam is also the most controversial development project of the nation. Activists have been long demanding that the filling of the reservoir with water be stopped immediately. They want the dam gates to be open to reduce the water level.

The gates of the dam were closed on July 17 to increase the height of the dam.

The permission for closing the gates was granted by the Narmada Control Authority after being convinced that rehabilitation of the people displaced due to the project was complete.

According to official figures, the dam has earned over Rs 16,000 crore. This means that the dam has already earned more than double the cost of its construction.

The power generated from the Sardar Sarovar Dam will be shared among Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat. About 57 percent of the electricity produced from the Sardar Sarovar Dam would go to Maharashtra while Madhya Pradesh will get 27 percent and Gujarat 16 percent.

The Narmada Bachao Andolan led by activist Medha Patkar has claimed that after raising the height of the Sardar Sarovar Dam, about 40,000 families in 192 villages in Madhya Pradesh will be displaced. The government has put the number of displaced families at 18,386 in Madhya Pradesh.

After the foundation stone of the Sardar Sarovar Dam was laid by the then Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru on April 5, 1961, the construction on the project began 26 years later in 1987, when his grandson Rajiv Gandhi was the Prime Minister.