Water Release from Doyang Hydel Project Sparks Flood Fears in Assam’s Golaghat District

Our Bureau

GOLAGHAT/BOKAKHAT: The Doyang Hydro Electric Project (DHEP) under NEEPCO Ltd released its excess water on Thursday due to the continuous rise in the reservoir's water level.

An official statement from the Office of the Deputy General Manager (Technical), the Dam and Spillway Division, Doyang Hydroelectric Project in Nagaland, said that three radial gates had been opened to a height of 0.75 m at RWL 321 m. The discharge from the spillway radial gate is 84 cumecs. The spillway discharge level is 324 m, but to avoid flash floods, the phased opening of gates has been done from 321 m.

NEEPCO said that the continuous rise in the reservoir water level and to accommodate the anticipated inflow, 2 Spillway Radial Gates were opened to regulate the rising RWL. Gate No. 2 was opened by 50 cm at 12:20 hrs, followed by Gate No. 3 by 50 cm at 12:30 hrs. The approximate spilling discharge through the spillway would be 29 cumecs. Later, radial gate 4 was also opened for releasing excess water.

Notably, on July 22, the NEEPCO authorities sent a circular to the Golaghat district administration citing the opening of radial gates of the Doyang Hydro Electrical Plant, NEEPCO, located at Wokha, Nagaland. In that letter, NEEPCO informed all concerned that the water level of Doyang Reservoir is rising rapidly during the past few days due to incessant rain in the catchment area.

It was further stated that, with the present trend of inflow of river water into Doyang Reservoir, the radial gates of the Doyang Dam would be opened for releasing excess water in a controlled manner even if the Reservoir Water Level did not reach the spilling level of El. 324.00 m. During the operation of the gates, the excess inflow would spill over and would flow through the Doyang River downstream of Doyang Power House.

Following the receipt of the letter, the district administration requested everyone to be careful and stay away from the Doyang River and Dhansiri River downstream of Doyang Power House and avoid bathing, swimming, fishing, etc., during the period of opening of the radial gates.

It is noteworthy that the Doyang Hydroelectric Project has a capacity of only 75 MW. The current situation has arisen due to the increase in water levels during the monsoon season even at this relatively small project. Concerns have therefore been raised that much larger hydropower projects in Arunachal Pradesh could pose a significantly greater flood risk for Assam in the future.

Regarding the measures taken by the Golaghat district administration, an NDRF team has been deployed in the Chichupani area for emergency response. A Civil Defence team has been dispatched to the Sarupathar Sub-Divisional Headquarters. SDRF teams from Golaghat will cover the Golaghat and Khumtai revenue circles, while an additional SDRF team from Bokakhat will be deployed in the Morangi and Bokakhat revenue circles if required. Depending on the situation, additional NDRF personnel may also be brought in from Jorhat.

Under the supervision of the District Information and Public Relations Officer (DIPRO) and the Sub-Divisional Information and Public Relations Officer (SDIPRO), public announcements are being made through loudspeakers to alert residents. All concerned agencies have been instructed to carry out rescue and relief operations as requested by the respective revenue circle officers.

As a result, there are growing concerns that flood conditions may worsen significantly in the Doyang and Dhansiri riverside areas, including Jamuguri and the greater Morangi region of Golaghat district.

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