List of Major Multipurpose River Valley Projects of India

What is a multipurpose project?

By building big dams on the valleys of rivers, facilities for energy, irrigation, tourist places are obtained. That is why they are called multipurpose river valley projects. The primary objective of river valley planning is the full use of water and land within a river basin for human benefit. India's first Prime Minister Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru called the multi-purpose river valley projects the 'temple of modern India'.

Benefits of River Valley Multipurpose Project:

Following are the major advantages of multi-purpose river valley projects in India:

  • Flood prevention.
  • Adequate waterways facilities by rivers.
  • Construction of big dams and generation of electricity from them.
  • To provide means of land irrigation with water irrigated by dams.
  • Preventing land erosion by controlling water and doing various types of terrestrial works for land conservation.
  • Deforestation and appropriate division and control of forest and agricultural land, management of fish production and its distribution.
  • Organizing the care and growth of animals and birds.
  • Prevention of other diseases like malaria etc. in the valley area.
  • Organizing the consumption and distribution of agricultural produce.
  • Traffic management.
  • Re-organization of industries powered by electricity.
  • Timely solutions to the growing problems faced by the industries.
  • Control over the cleanliness of rivers and organize many other things related to human life.
  • Management and overall control.
  • Irrigation management.
  • protect the environment.
  • Land conservation and development of fisheries.

List of Major Multipurpose River Valley Projects of India:

Project Name and River Related Beneficiary state Purpose
Bhakra Nangal Project (Sutlej River) Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Rajasthan Generation of hydroelectric power, and providing irrigation facilities
Beas Project (Vyas River) Rajasthan, Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh Generation of hydroelectric power, and providing irrigation facilities
Dulhasti Project (Chandra River) Jammu and Kashmir To produce hydroelectric power
Damodar Project (Damodar River) Jharkhand, West Bengal Project for power generation, irrigation and flood control
Hirakud Dam Project (Mahanadi) Odisha Generation of power and providing irrigation facilities
Chambal Project (Chambal River) Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh Irrigation, and thermal power generation
Tungabhadra Project (Tungabhadra River) Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka Generation of power and providing irrigation facilities
Mayurakshi Project (Mayurakshi River) West Bengal Generation of power and providing irrigation facilities
Nagarjuna Sagar Project (Krishna River) Andra Pradesh Generation of power and providing irrigation facilities
Kosi Project (Kosi River) Bihar and Nepal Project for power generation, irrigation and flood control
Gandak River Project (Gandak River) Bihar and Nepal Generation of power and providing irrigation facilities
Farakka Project (Ganga, Bhagirathi) West Bengal Providing facilities for power generation, irrigation and shipping
Kakdapara Project (Tapti River) Gujarat Providing irrigation facilities
Tawa Project (Tawa River) Madhya Pradesh Providing irrigation facilities
Nagpur Powerhouse Project (Kordi River) Maharashtra To produce thermal power
Indira Gandhi Canal Project (Sutlej River) Rajasthan, Punjab, and Haryana Produce irrigation, drinking water and thermal power power
Ukai Project (Tapti River) Gujarat Generation of power and providing irrigation facilities
Pochampad Project (Godavari River) Karnataka Providing irrigation facilities
Malaprabha Project (Malaprabha River) Karnataka Providing irrigation facilities
Mahanadi Delta Project (Mahanadi) Odisha Providing irrigation facilities
Rihand Project (Rihand River) Uttar Pradesh To produce hydroelectric power
Kunda Project (Kunda River) Tamil Nadu Providing Hydroelectric Power Irrigation Facility
Durga Viraj Project (Damodar River) West Bengal, Jharkhand Providing irrigation and navigational facilities between Kolkata and Raniganj
Idukki Project (Periyar River) Kerala To produce hydroelectric power
Tehri Dam Project (Bhagirathi River) Uttarakhand To produce hydroelectric power
Matatila Project (Betwa River) Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh Generation of hydroelectric power and providing irrigation facilities
Koyna Project (Koyna River) Maharashtra To produce hydroelectric power
Ramganga Project (Ramganga River) Uttar Pradesh Generation of electric power and providing irrigation facilities
Upper Krishna Project (Krishna River) Karnataka Providing irrigation facilities
Ghatprabha Project (Ghatprabha River) Karnataka Providing Hydroelectric Power Irrigation Facility
Bhima Project (Pawana River) Maharashtra Providing irrigation and hydroelectric power facilities
Bhadra Project (Bhadra River) Karnataka Providing irrigation and hydroelectric power facilities
Ranjit Sagar Dam Project (Ravi River) Punjab To produce hydroelectric power
Hidkal Project (Ghatprabha River) Karnataka Hydroelectric irrigation and hydroelectric power generation
Sutlej Project (Chenab River) Jammu and Kashmir Project for Hydroelectric Power Generation, Irrigation and Flood Control
Nathpa-Jhakri Project (Satluj River) Himachal Pradesh Providing hydroelectric power facility
Panama Project (Panama River) Gujarat Providing irrigation facilities
Kol Dam Project (Satluj River) Himachal Pradesh Irrigation and hydroelectric power generation
Kangaswati Project (Kangaswati) West Bengal Irrigation and hydroelectric power generation

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India's first Prime Minister Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru called the multipurpose river valley project the 'temple of modern India'.

In 1962, Jawaharlal Nehru dedicated India's largest multi-purpose river valley project, the Bhakra Nangal Dam, to the nation. Apart from being the second largest dam in the country, it is also the second largest dam in Asia.

The Bhakra Nangal Dam is built on the Sutlej River. This dam is made up of two dams Bhakra and Nangal dams. Bhakra Dam is built 13 km away from Nangal Dam.

The Tulbul project is located on the Jhelum River, which flows through five rivers in Punjab and joins Pakistan. According to the original Indian plan, this barrage is 439 feet long and 40 feet wide. Its maximum capacity is 3,00000 acre feet. The Tulbul Project is a navigation "lock cum control structure" on the Wular Lake.

The 'Damodar River Valley' project came into existence on July 7, 1948 as the first multipurpose project of India. The project, like most projects in India, is modeled on the US 'Tennessee Valley Project', which is designed to maximize water use.

  Last update :  Sat 27 Aug 2022
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  Post Category :  Human Geography of India