On December 12, 2018, Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs and Water Resources Arjun Ram Meghwal introduced the Dam Safety Bill 2018 in Lok Sabha.
It was introduced on behalf of the Road and Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari.
i. The bill will be applied to specified dams across all states.
About Dam Safety Bill 2018:
i. The Dam Safety Bill, 2018 was drafted by Ministry of Water Resources, River Development & Ganga Rejuvenation (MoWR,RD&GR).
ii. The bill aims to provide a robust legal and institutional framework for the safety of dams under Central and state governments.
iii. The purview of the bill includes the following:
The surveillance, inspection, operation and maintenance of specified dams for prevention of dam failure related disasters,
Constitution of a ‘National Committee on Dam Safety (NCDS)’, chaired by Chairman of CWC, to evolve dam safety policies and recommend necessary regulations,
Establishment of ‘National Dam Safety Authority’ (NDSA) as a regulatory body to implement the policy, guidelines and standards for dam safety in the country,
Constitution of ‘State Committee on Dam Safety’ by the State Governments for proper surveillance,
Mandates every state has to establish a State Dam Safety Organisation.
In cases where a dam is extended over two or more States or dams of one State falling under the territory of another State, the National Authority has to perform the role of State Dam Safety Organization.
Additionally, Emergency action plan has to be prepared by the owner of a dam within 5 years and for new dams it has to be prepared before filling.
Background:
Central Water Commission (CWC) maintains the National Register of Large Dams (NRLD) based on information received from the State Governments. As per NRLD, there are 5264 large dams completed and 437 large dams under construction in India. Number of dam failures reported in India is 36.
Ministry of Water Resources, River Development & Ganga Rejuvenation (MoWR,RD&GR):
♦ Union Minister: Shri. Nitin Gadkari.
♦ Minister of State: Shri. Satya Pal Singh, Shri. Arjun Ram Meghwal.