HASSAN: Looking at the popular sentiments that the Upper Bhadra Project (UBP) evokes, it comes as no surprise that political parties have used it to gain votes during elections.

The Rs. 126-crore project was conceived in 1969 when S. Nijalingappa was the Chief Minister. It was expected to irrigate 2.50 lakh acres of land in 20 taluks in six drought-prone districts. When the project was revised in 1980, the cost escalated to Rs. 260 crores, and it again rose to Rs. 650 crores in 1985.

It was Ramakrishna Hegde who revived the UBP during the 1985 election campaign. During his visit to Chitradurga district on the eve of the election, he assured people that the project will be taken up under the Seventh Plan.

People also urged the late Rajiv Gandhi, former Prime Minister, during his visit to Chitradurga in 1988 to take steps to implement the UBP. He directed the State Government to send a proposal in this regard to the Union Government.

When the late Prime Minister P.V. Narasimha Rao visited Chitradurga, people sought to know about the fate of the UBP. Mr. Rao directed the then Chief Minister, M. Veerappa Moily, to take up the project. Mr. Moily instantly declared that the project will be implemented without delay.

On March 18, 1996, the then Chief Minister, H.D. Deve Gowda, who visited Anjanapura reservoir near Shimoga, declared that his Government wss determined to implement UBP. But interestingly, Mr. Deve Gowda, earlier replying to a question in the Legislative Assembly, had said that the implementation of the UBP would be detrimental to the Malnad region, which created discontentment among elected representatives from Chitradurga district.

Apart from a general study conducted by the Department of Forest, no detailed study has been made on the impact of UBP on the ecology of the Western Ghats.

A few years ago, the Mumbai-based Natural History Society requested environmentalist Ullas Karanth to make a study and submit a report on the impact of the UBP on the flora and fauna of Western Ghats. After a detailed study, Mr. Karanth said that besides valuable forest wealth, the project would be detrimental to the lives of endangered species.

Submersion

According to sources, 5,435 acres of land, including 801 acres of forests, 790 acres of coffee plantations and 3,844 acres of revenue land will be submerged if the project is implemented. Besides, pilgrimage centres such as Horanadu and Kalasa may face the threat of submersion. According to another estimate, about 25,000 people will be evicted from the region and rehabilitation will pose a big problem if the project is implemented. According to officials, the eviction of tribal people has already created problems in Chikmagalur district. Implementation of the project will help naxalites to expand their activities.

According to sources, it is possible to impound only 10 tmcft of water under the first stage of the UBP. The remaining 13 tmcft of water will be made available from various sources, including 6.25 tmcft from the modernisation of the Tunga reservoir, 0.5 tmcft from renovating the Bhadra reservoir and 6.25 tmcft from modernising the Vijayanagara canals.

Interestingly, despite sending proposals for the modernisation of the Tunga and Bhadra reservoirs, the Government has earmarked funds in every budget, but they do not exceed 20 per cent of the project cost of Rs. 450 crores, according to sources in the Water Resources Department.

(Concluded)

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