Which is the Biggest Dam in India? (Tehri Dam Facts)

Which is the Biggest Dam in India? Discover the Giant Powerhouse of Tehri Dam

India, with its diverse terrain and mighty rivers, is home to some of the most impressive dams in the world. These colossal structures not only support irrigation and water storage, but also play a vital role in hydroelectric power generation, flood control, and urban water supply. But among all these engineering marvels, which is the biggest dam in India?

Let’s dive deep into the incredible story and significance of the Tehri Dam, India's tallest and biggest dam.

India is one of the countries with the largest dams in the world. There are more than 5,000 large and medium-sized dams here, but if we talk about the largest and most famous dam, the name of 'Tehri Dam' comes first. This dam has been built on the Bhagirathi River in the Tehri Garhwal district of Uttarakhand and is considered the highest dam in Asia. Let us now understand all its important aspects in detail.

Location of Tehri Dam

Tehri Dam is located in the Garhwal region of Uttarakhand, which is located in the lap of the Himalayas. The dam is located on the Bhagirathi River, which further merges with the Alaknanda to form the Ganges River. This river is extremely important for India religiously, culturally and economically. The location of the dam is also strategic geographically as it provides the capacity to store water in the hilly areas.

Tehri Dam is close to religious cities like Rishikesh and Haridwar, which attracts millions of pilgrims to the area every year. It takes about 7–8 hours to reach here from Delhi. The dam is surrounded by natural beauty – high mountains, cool air and lush forests attract tourists.

Locally, this dam has led to an increase in both employment and tourism. The Tehri Lake that is developing around it is now known for activities like water sports, boating and paragliding. That is, Tehri Dam is not only a marvel of engineering but has also become popular as a tourist destination.

Construction & History of Tehri Dam

The Tehri Dam was conceived in the 1960s, but its construction began in 1978. From the very beginning, the project faced many challenges and opposition. While the dam could have been a major source of electricity and water for North India, it also faced the problem of displacing thousands of people from their homes.

The construction of the dam took about 26 years and was finally made fully operational in 2006. The project cost an estimated Rs 8,000 crore. Thousands of workers, engineers and scientists worked hard to make it a reality during the construction.

Technology from many countries around the world was used to build the dam. Since it is a particularly seismic (earthquake-prone) area, the dam was designed in such a way that it can withstand an earthquake of magnitude 8. This project can be considered one of the most challenging hydro-projects in India.

Structure of Tehri Dam

The Tehri Dam is the tallest dam in Asia. Its height is about 260.5 metres (855 ft), while its length is 575 metres. The total capacity of the dam is about 3.54 billion cubic meters of water.

This dam is of the "Earth and Rock-fill" type, meaning that it is mainly made of stone and soil. This type of dam is considered strong and durable for long-term use. The huge Tehri Lake built behind the dam is a large reservoir located between the mountains, which is also famous for tourism these days.

Special attention has been given to earthquake safety in the design of the dam, because Uttarakhand falls in the seismic zone. Hence, the dam is considered one of the strongest hydro structures in the world.

Power Generation from Tehri Dam

The Tehri Dam is very important not only for storing water but also for generating electricity. A 1,000 MW hydro power plant is installed in the dam, in which four turbines (each with a capacity of 250 MW) are operating.

Apart from this, a project called Tehri Pumped Storage Plant is also underway here, which after completion will be able to provide an additional 1,000 MW capacity to the country. That is, in total, this dam will provide more than 2,000 MW of electricity to the country.

Many states of North India such as Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana and Uttarakhand benefit from the electricity generated from this dam.

Water Supply & Irrigation

The biggest benefit generated from Tehri Dam is the availability of water. This dam supplies 270 million gallons of drinking water to states like Delhi, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh every day. Apart from this, it provides water for irrigation to the surrounding farmers.

Farmers have increased their agricultural production due to Tehri Dam. Where earlier they had to depend on rain, now they get sufficient water throughout the year. Especially the yield of crops like wheat, rice and sugarcane has increased drastically.

This dam is considered a lifesaver in terms of providing drinking water to cities. If there were no Tehri Dam, the water shortage in cities like Delhi would have increased a lot.

Environmental & Social Impact

As beneficial as the Tehri Dam is, it also has an impact on the environment and society. During the construction of the dam, thousands of people had to leave their villages. Approximately more than 1 lakh people had to be rehabilitated.

From the environmental point of view, many forests were submerged in water and the natural ecosystem there changed. Apart from this, scientists are constantly worried that if a major earthquake occurs in the future, this dam may be damaged.

Although the government provided new houses, land and compensation to people under the rehabilitation scheme, many people still had the painful experience of losing their homeland.

Tourism at Tehri Dam

Nowadays, Tehri Dam is not just an engineering project, but has also become a major center of tourism. Tehri Lake, built behind the dam, is now known for adventure sports. Thousands of tourists come here for activities like boating, kayaking, jet skiing, paragliding and camping.

The Uttarakhand government is also trying to make Tehri Lake an international tourist destination. Every year, the Tehri Lake Festival is held here, in which music, dance, adventure sports and cultural programs are organized.

Therefore, Tehri Dam has become important not only for electricity and water but also for tourism and the local economy.

Tehri Dam is the tallest dam in Asia and the largest dam in India. It is not only very important for electricity generation but also for water supply, irrigation, flood control and tourism.

Although it has created environmental and rehabilitation challenges, to date it is proving to be a lifesaver for crores of people in North India.