Eastern Rajasthan Canal Project

Eastern Rajasthan Canal Project

Subject: Geography

Section: Mapping

Context- The Chief Minister of Rajasthan has demanded the national project status for the Eastern Rajasthan Canal Project (ERCP).

Concept-

• The main advantage of a project which has received national project status is that 90% of the funding for the project will be given by the central government.
• The estimated cost of the ERCP is around Rs. 40,000 crore.

About the Eastern Rajasthan Canal Project:

• It aims to harvest surplus water available during rainy season in rivers in Southern Rajasthan such as Chambal and its tributaries, including Kunnu, Parvati, Kalisindh, and use this water in south-eastern districts of the state, where there is scarcity of water for drinking and irrigation.
• ERCP is planned to meet drinking and industrial water needs of the southern and south eastern Rajasthan, for humans and Livestock till the year 2051.
• It proposes to provide drinking water to 13 districts of Rajasthan and provide irrigation water for 2.8 lakh hectares of land through 26 different large and medium projects.
• 13 districts: Jhalawar, Baran, Kota, Bundi, Sawai Madhopur, Ajmer, Tonk, Jaipur, Karauli, Alwar, Bharatpur, Dausa and Dholpur.

Chambal River:

• It is one of the most pollution-free rivers of India.
• It originates at the Singar Chouri peak in the northern slopes of the Vindhya mountains (Indore, Madhya Pradesh). From there, it flows in the North direction in Madhya Pradesh for a length of about 346 km and then follows a north-easterly direction for a length of 225 km through Rajasthan.
• It enters U.P. and flows for about 32 km before joining the Yamuna River in Etawah District.
• It is a rainfed river and its basin is bounded by the Vindhyan mountain ranges and the Aravallis. The Chambal and its tributaries drain the Malwa region of northwestern Madhya Pradesh.
• The Hadauti plateau in Rajasthan occurs in the upper catchment of the Chambal River to the southeast of the Mewar Plains.
• Tributaries: Banas, Kali Sindh, Sipra, Parbati, etc.
• Main Power Projects/ Dam: Gandhi Sagar Dam, Rana Pratap Sagar Dam, Jawahar Sagar Dam, and Kota Barrage.
• The National Chambal Sanctuary is located along river Chambal on the tri-junction of Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh. It is known for critically endangered gharial, the red-crowned roof turtle, and the endangered Ganges river dolphin.