Cabinet approves funding and implementation of Ken-Betwa river project

Category
Polity & Governance
Published
13th Dec, 2021

Context

The Union Cabinet has recently approved the funding and implementation of Ken-Betwa inter-linking of rivers project with a total cost of Rs 44,605 crore. The project has a deadline of eight years.

About

What is Ken-Betwa Link Project?

The Ken-Betwa Link Project is the first project under the National Perspective Plan for interlinking of rivers.
Under this project, water from the Ken River will be transferred to the Betwa River.
- Both these rivers originate in Madhya Pradesh and are tributaries of river Yamuna.
The Ken-Betwa Link Project lies in Bundelkhand, a drought-prone region, which spreads across 13 districts of Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh.
The project will take eight years to set up, including building the ‘Daudhan dam’ on the Ken river in Madhya Pradesh’s Chhatarpur district, inside the Panna Tiger Reserve.
From here, a canal is expected to carry water from the Ken to the Betwa river through the districts of Chhatarpur and Tikamgarh in Madhya Pradesh and Jhansi in Uttar Pradesh.
Ken-Betwa Link Project Authority (KBLPA): A Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) called Ken-Betwa Link Project Authority (KBLPA) will be set up to implement the project.

Ken River

The River Ken flows through two states namely Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh in India.
It is one of the major rivers of Bundelkhand region of central India and is a tributary of the river Yamuna.
River Ken originates near a village called Ahirgawan which is on the north-west slopes of Kaimur Range in the Jabalpur district. The river travels a distance of 427 km before it merges with the Yamuna at Chilla village, near Fatehpur in Uttar Pradesh.
The River Ken has many tributaries namely the Sonar River is its largest tributary, rivers like Bawas, Dewar, Baink, and Kaith on its left bank, while the tributaries on the right include Bearma and Kopra. The Ken valley also separates the Rewa Plateau from the Satna Plateau.

Betwa River

The Betwa River is a southern tributary of river Yamuna which flows between the states of Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh.
It originates near Barkhera village (south west of capital city Bhopal) in Raisen district of Madhya Pradesh.
The source of the river is located at an elevation of 576m above sea level in the Vindhya mountain range.

Phases of the Project

The Ken-Betwa Link Project has two phases:
- Phase-I: Under Phase-I, one of the components — Daudhan dam complex and its appurtenances like Low Level Tunnel, High Level Tunnel, Ken-Betwa link canal and Power houses — will be completed
- Phase-II: In the Phase-II, three components — Lower Orr dam, Bina complex project and Kotha barrage — will be constructed.