That is a great detailed description, C-da. Thank you! And it does look scary. How can a natural process be totally stopped and all the waters be stored into those dams It will be like cleaning the Augean Stables.
Also, even if it is done, if/when the embankments give way then the water will be uncontrollable. This would be worse than the Riverlinking idea. I don't see a solution there now. : ( On Nov 2, 2012, at 10:26 PM, "Chan Mahanta" <[email protected]> wrote: > A: > > It is NOT so much about building dams as embankments. The idea proposed by > Major Chandra is entirely based on building > hundreds of miles of mega-embankments, on both sides of the Brahmaputra. He > would create monster canals, impoundments, he calls Sagars, > both sides of the Brahmaputra, ostensibly to prevent the tributaries from > flooding the main river and its flood plains, which really is most of the > Brahmaputra valley. His embankments are proposed to be 20 meters ( 66 ft) in > height. > > If we draw a cross section of a 66' tall embankment with a 20 meter ( again > 66') top, it will be like a mesa that is 66' wide at the top and 330 ft. wide > ( 110 yds) > at the base at the very least ( with a 1:2 slope, which is much too > steep-ideally it should be 1:3). These will run from the western to the > eastern end of the Brahmaputra valley, two of them to the north and two to > the south. I call them the Mother of All Embankments. > > Now compare these embankments to the new highway that has been under > construction four at least the past 5 years, from near Jagiroad to near > Na-Gaon. I am not sure if it is done, YET! Did you see the environmental > catastrophe this project created? And it was barely 3 meters tall and perhaps > no more than 15 meters wide at the top. The Chandra Sagar project will be a > hundred folds larger, if not more. Oh, one more thing: Chandra knows he will > have to build an impervious core to these embankments. Impervious core will > be concrete. I am no civil engineer, but an educated guess will be that this > impervious core, 66' tall will be at least 10' thick. Can you imagine the > volume of concrete he will need to build these - nearly 500 mile long for > each embankment, multiplied by two for the north and an equally long , nearly > a thousand miles, for the south AT THE VERY LEAST. I say at the very least, > because we have not considered the lengths of these embankments both sides of > the tributaries also that the scheme will require as well. > > All these are in the realm of the possible. But at a cost. And what might the > costs be? > > A: First we should look at WHY the Brahmaputra and the tributaries flood so > much. A very short and simple answer is that the rivers have become very > shallow > from silting. So to be able to carry they volume of water they need to > expand, widen, causing flooding. The PRIMARY cause of the worsening flooding > is SILTING of the rivers. > > So, why are these rivers getting silted? Where is the silt coming from? A > simple answer is that it comers from Arunachal to the north and from the > other hIll areas from the south. > > WHY you may ask. Again to put it simply, because of unrelenting deforestation > and land disturbance ( earthmoving) in these hilly areas. The population > there are building roads, settlements, farming more and so forth. > > Now then, what do you think will Chandra's embankment building do to the > silting problem of these rivers? Simply put, it will exacerbate the silting > problem by several hundred folds, not to mention the dust and other pollution > that will be the norm all over Assam for decades to come. > > Not that Chandra does not know of the silting problem. He does. And he tells > us that the tributaries will have to be fitted with dams to prevent the silt > from getting into the > Brahmaputra and that they will have to be DREDGED! > > Wait just a minute! Dredging did he say? I heard it is NOT possible. > Apparently Indian and Kharkhowa experts have decided that dredging is not > feasible since there is no place to deposit the dredged silt. I am sure you > heard it too, right here in Assamnet. > > WHAT GIVES? Does it NOT sound fishy to you? IF Chandra Sagars are contingent > on de-silting of the tributaries, why not start doing that to the MOTHER > river, the Brahmaputra, to begin with? That will obviate the need for > building the Chandra Sagars with the mother-of all embankments, which will > uproot thousands of natives from the valley and render vast areas of fertile > arable land permanently inundated and keep it under water year round. > > But that is NOT ALL. There is much more to it that I will point out, should > it be difficult for you and others to imagine! > > Chandra Sagars are borne out of a far more insidious and unspoken motive. > Guess what? > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > On Nov 2, 2012, at 9:19 PM, Alpana B. Sarangapani <[email protected]> > wrote: > >> If you did not like the RiverLinks project how would you like this project >> which talks about building dams? >> >> Taking care of the flood problem which washes away all hopes for the >> villagers/farmers every year, was the main reason that made me fall for it, >> like many would! >> >> I won't deserve any praises since it isn't my project or anything, just was >> not ready for the Guwal-gaali'. : ) >> >> Did not want to make mm-da mad either, as he also 'naakos kori disil >> prothomotei' when he brought it up yesterday. >> >> >> >> >> >> >> >> >> >> Sent from my iPad >> >> >> On Nov 2, 2012, at 2:17 PM, "Chan Mahanta" <[email protected]> wrote: >> >>> >>> Aw come on A! Nobody is gonna bite you. What are you afraid of? Being right >>> or wrong ? >>> >>> *I* promise NOT to make any snide or sarcastic comments if you are wrong. >>> Instead I will try to explain why you may be wrong. >>> On the other hand, if you make the right assessment, we will shower you >>> with praise. Wouldn't that be nice? >>> >>> So, go ahead and do share your thoughts. We will all be the richer for it. >>> Personally, I learn something everyday. Who knows, you >>> may open my close mind! >>> >>> :-) >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> On Nov 2, 2012, at 2:04 PM, "Alpana B. Sarangapani" >>> <[email protected]> wrote: >>> >>>> Yes, i saw that and read some of it. Thanks to Babul. >>>> >>>> To be honest, I am just too afraid to comment now. : ) >>>> >>>> >>>> >>>> On Nov 2, 2012, at 9:13 AM, "Chan Mahanta" <[email protected]> wrote: >>>> >>>>> So, Alpana, Babul has provided ALL the written material of the Oxom >>>>> Xaagor scheme. The proposal describes all the benefits the scheme >>>>> is expected to generate. The big idea is to block the tributaries from >>>>> contributing flood water to the Brahmaputra. >>>>> >>>>> But that is not all! >>>>> >>>>> Major Chandra has also put together an exactly similar scheme to block >>>>> ALL of the tributaries to the Ganga in Bihar as well, creating Bihar >>>>> Sagars. >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> Note also the one line item: >>>>> 12. *NO INVOLVEMENT OF *any other state. >>>>> >>>>> I am sure you know why it is such a stand-out bit of info. He knows >>>>> Assam's sensitivity about her waters being spirited away. >>>>> >>>>> How can one go wrong, right? >>>>> >>>>> ** Think about it, and see if there could be problems with the scheme. >>>>> And if so what? >>>>> >>>>> c-da >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> On Nov 1, 2012, at 8:57 PM, "Alpana B. Sarangapani" >>>>> <[email protected]> wrote: >>>>> >>>>>> Thul-mulkoi - in text version, can it be explained, what is this Oxom >>>>>> -Xaagor that Mukul-da and now you are talking about, C-da? >>>>>> >>>>>> >>>>>> >>>>>> >>>>>> Sent from my iPad >>>>>> >>>>>> >>>>>> On Nov 1, 2012, at 5:07 PM, "Chan Mahanta" <[email protected]> wrote: >>>>>> >>>>>>> Hello Assamnetters, >>>>>>> >>>>>>> Long time no talk. >>>>>>> >>>>>>> Decided to return to the ol' 'juhalor mel' by announcing my latest blog >>>>>>> site. I hope this one will last a bit longer than the previous attempts. >>>>>>> Posted a picture to: >>>>>>> >>>>>>> http://chanmanstl.tumblr.com >>>>>>> >>>>>>> It is from my recent 10 day rafting/ camping trip down the Colorado >>>>>>> River deep in the bottom of the Grand Canyon. It was an awesome trip. >>>>>>> I hope to share some images and hopefully with a little description in >>>>>>> the coming weeks and months. It is a departure from my usual >>>>>>> fare in assamnet. But this may be more palatable than the never ending >>>>>>> debates of the past :-). >>>>>>> >>>>>>> Speaking of which, mm's note of this morning referring to Oxom Xagor is >>>>>>> something that got me going a few days back. It is yet another >>>>>>> one of those hare-brained proposals that ought to be nipped in the bud. >>>>>>> I thought of posting it here, but since it requires graphic attachment, >>>>>>> probably won't go thru this list. Maybe I will be able to post it thru >>>>>>> some other forum. We will see. The author also prohibits publishing it >>>>>>> without permission. I can imagine why :-). >>>>>>> >>>>>>> cm >>>>>>> _______________________________________________ >>>>>>> assam mailing list >>>>>>> [email protected] >>>>>>> http://assamnet.org/mailman/listinfo/assam_assamnet.org >>>>>> >>>>>> _______________________________________________ >>>>>> assam mailing list >>>>>> [email protected] >>>>>> http://assamnet.org/mailman/listinfo/assam_assamnet.org >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> _______________________________________________ >>>>> assam mailing list >>>>> [email protected] >>>>> http://assamnet.org/mailman/listinfo/assam_assamnet.org >>>> >>>> _______________________________________________ >>>> assam mailing list >>>> [email protected] >>>> http://assamnet.org/mailman/listinfo/assam_assamnet.org >>> >>> >>> _______________________________________________ >>> assam mailing list >>> [email protected] >>> http://assamnet.org/mailman/listinfo/assam_assamnet.org >> >> _______________________________________________ >> assam mailing list >> [email protected] >> http://assamnet.org/mailman/listinfo/assam_assamnet.org > > > _______________________________________________ > assam mailing list > [email protected] > http://assamnet.org/mailman/listinfo/assam_assamnet.org _______________________________________________ assam mailing list [email protected] http://assamnet.org/mailman/listinfo/assam_assamnet.org
