HYDERABAD, Feb 28: Arrangements have been finalised for the construction of Nai Gaaj dam in the Kachho area of Johi taluka in Dadu district, and work on the project will begin next month after appointment of consultants.
According to official sources, Nai Gaaj is one of the mega projects President Gen Pervez Musharraf announced for Sindh which will be completed in four years at an estimated cost of Rs6321.241 million. The objectives of the project include irrigated agriculture development, hydropower generation, flood control, fisheries development and socio-economic uplift of the area.
Besides approval for the dam project by the federal ministry of water and power on December 5, 2006, the technical proposals were prepared on February 7 and are under evaluation at present.
The topographic survey, mapping, geological investigation and studies of the reservoir, structure and command areas and main canal, including geophysical survey by seismic refraction, sub-surface investigation and laboratory testing, have been carried out by the experts. The dam will have 10 numbers of 40 ft x 20 ft Ogee crest type spillway gates, having crest elevation of 520 ft AMSL, width of 454 ft and capacity of 253,000 cusecs. The USBR Type-IV stilling basin will have the length of 246 ft and the fuse plug capacity will be 74,000 cusecs.
Out of 56,320 gross cultivable area, 23,927 acres are ranked in Class-I with very good agriculture land, 2833 in Class-II with good agriculture land 13,240 acres as poor agriculture land and 16,320 acres as unproductive land.
According to existing cropping pattern and intensities of 40,000 acres of cultivable area, sorghum and millet are sown on 528 acres and 360 acres, respectively, during Kharif, which is 1.32 and 0.90 per cent intensity.
During Rabi, the sowing pattern is: wheat on 1,336 acres with 3.34 per cent intensity, vegetable on 12 acres with 0.03 intensity and other (oilseed) on 88 acres with 0.22 per cent intensity, however, the cropping intensities with the project would be enhanced as 15 per cent cotton, 4 per cent each sorghum and millet, 6 per cent each maize, pulses, fodder, vegetables and 2 per cent each melon and orchards during Kharif, 41 per cent wheat, 10 per cent oilseed, 5 per cent and fodder (berseem), 6 per cent.
A total of 765.53 acres of land will be required for the reservoir, main canal, distributaries, minors and colony purpose, which includes 316 acres for reservoir, 56.42 acres for main canal, 389.45 acres for distributaries and minors and 3.66 acres for establishment of a colony. As many as 596 residents of the area will be affected.
The project re-settlement cost will be Rs177.382 million which includes Rs141.542 million for land acquisition, Rs2 million for compensation for dwelling and huts, Rs12 million for compensation for farm produce, fruit-bearing and other trees and Rs21.840 million as other cost, including infrastructure development.—APP