Mapithel Dam or Maphou Dam, officially known as the Thoubal Multipurpose Project, is a dam on the

Thoubal river Thoubal River is a river that flows from the hills of Ukhrul District and merges into the Imphal River at Bitra Urokhong. The Mapithel Dam is constructed on the river at Maphou village of Kangpokpi District Kangpokpi district ( Meitei ...

, in the

Manipur Manipur () is a state in northeastern India with Imphal as its capital. It borders the Indian states of Assam to the west, Mizoram to the south, and Nagaland to the north and shares the international border with Myanmar, specifically t ...

state of India. Construction of the dam was met with protests from local communities. The dam's official inauguration occurred on December 27, 2020 although the drinking water distribution system was not operational.

Description

The dam, on the Thoubal river, is designed to supply 7.5 megawatts of electricity, irrigate 33,449 hectares of land, and supply 10 million gallons of drinking water to

Imphal Imphal (; , ) is the capital city of the Indian state of Manipur. The metropolitan centre of the city contains the ruins of Kangla Palace (officially known as Kangla Fort), the royal seat of the former Kingdom of Manipur, surrounded by a ...

. The earth dam's design is 1,120 metres long. The dam is located in the

Ukhrul district Ukhrul district ( Meitei pronunciation:/ˈuːkˌɹəl or ˈuːkˌɹʊl/) is an administrative district of the state of Manipur in India with its headquarters at Ukhrul. The Ukhrul district has a long history dating back to the 1920s when it wa ...

, 35 kilometres from Imphal, the Manipur state capitol. Officially known as Thoubal Multipurpose Project, the dam's construction is managed by Loktak Downstream Hydroelectric Corporation Limited, a joint venture of the

Government of Manipur The Government of Manipur (; /mə.ni.pur lə́i.ŋak/), also known as the State Government of Manipur, or locally as State Government, is the supreme governing authority of the Indian state of Manipur and its 16 districts. It consists of an ex ...

and public sector power company NHPC. The government own 26% of the project, the company own 74%. The dam is expected to flood 2,000 hectares, affecting approximately 8,000 people and the land of six villages, impacting farming and fishing. 2022 cost estimates of the project were Rs 47.25

crore Crore (; abbreviated cr) denotes the quantity ten million (107) and is equal to 100 lakh in the Indian numbering system. In many international contexts, the decimal quantity is formatted as 10,000,000, but when used in the context of the India ...

History

The project was approved for construction by the local government in May 1980. Targets to open the dam were missed in 1987, 1994, 2002, 2007, 2013, 2015, twice in 2016, 2017 and 2018. In 2015 protests occurred against the dam and in 2016, Thoyee, Riha and Naga village community members raised concerns about the dam's impact on forestry and community land. Both the Centre for Research and Advocacy and the Committee on Human Rights expressed concern about the dam's impact on the communities. Protest from the local community occurred at Lamlai Khunao village on December 7 2020. Villagers complained that a memorandum of agreement with the Water Resources Department was being breached. The agreement covered solutions to impacts from the dam, including interruptions to their way of life and fishing. Villagers wanted water released and the dam project halted. After a dispute between villagers affected by the dam, the

National Green Tribunal The National Green Tribunal (NGT) is a statutory body in India that deals with expeditious disposal of cases related to environmental protection and other natural resources. It was set up under the National Green Tribunal Act in 2010. India ...

found in favour of the villagers, against the government, citing the

Forest Rights Act The Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006, is a key piece of forest legislation passed in India on 18 December 2006. It has also been called the Forest Rights Act, the Tribal Rights Act, ...

. The government appealed the decision to the

Supreme Court In most legal jurisdictions, a supreme court, also known as a court of last resort, apex court, high (or final) court of appeal, and court of final appeal, is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...

in 2018. During a 2019 drought in Manupur, government officials reported that the dam saved paddy fields. The dam was officially inaugurated on December 27, 2020, despite the water distribution pipework being incomplete and by 2021 still assessed as being over one year short of completion in January 2021. By 2021, holistic impact assessments had not been completed, details on the environmental, ecological cultural, livelihood, social and health impacts were all not fully assessed. During March 2023 water shortages, The Manipur

Public Health Engineering Department The Public Health Engineering Department (PHED) is a public agency in Pakistan and India that is responsible for rural water supply. During natural disasters the agency has the responsibility to get drinking water to the public as well as collab ...

stated that the dam would soon be able to provide drinking water to the residents of Imphal. At the time, the dam was reported to be supplying water to the Chingkheiching Forest Reserve and was holding 75 to 80 million cubic feet of water.

References

{{reflist Dams in Manipur Embankment dams Dams under construction Hydroelectric power stations in Manipur Publicly owned dams

Description

History

See also

References