Assam: Subansiri River Dries Up in North Lakhimpur District, Raising Concerns

NORTH LAKHIMPUR: Residents of North Lakhimpur district were taken aback when the Subansiri River suddenly dried up on Friday morning, sparking fear and concern among the local population.

The suspected cause of this alarming situation is a blockade in the No. 1 diversion tunnel of the National Hydro-electrical Power Corporation (NHPC)'s Subansiri Lower Hydroelectric Power (SLHEP) plant's dam on the left bank. This diversion tunnel is responsible for redirecting the Subansiri's water flow from the dam site to the downstream of the river through a two-kilometer course, maintaining a standard water volume in the downstream areas. The blockade occurred due to a landslide that took place the previous night.

The NHPC issued a statement, explaining, "Out of the 5 diversion tunnels with a diameter of 9.5 meters each, only the diversion tunnel number 1 was in use and has been blocked due to a landslide around 11:30 am today. The other four diversion tunnels were previously blocked. Consequently, the river's flow downstream has been significantly reduced."

The statement further mentioned, "The dam spillway bay level is 145 meters above sea level. The current river flow of 997 cubic meters per second is being stored in the reservoir, and the water level in the reservoir is rising. By 1 pm, the water level reached 139 meters, and it is expected to reach 145 meters by the evening, allowing the river to flow through the spillway to the downstream as usual."

The sudden drying up of the Subansiri has triggered concerns of a potential breach in the diversion tunnel due to the blocked water, a situation similar to the recent incident in Sikkim.

The SLHEP dam, scheduled to become operational from January 2024, has long been a cause of worry for the local population. Frequent landslides have disrupted construction work, indicating the fragile nature of the terrain where the hydropower dam is situated. Despite NHPC's claims of the dam's safety, its location in hilly terrain raises concerns.

Allegedly, NHPC took charge of SLHEP from the Brahmaputra Board without conducting a geological assessment of the dam site.

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