The Kosi Barrage was built in 1956 with a lifespan of 25 years but 27 years since its ?expiry date?, the barrage has not been replaced by a more permanent arrangement. Today, Kosi in Nepal flows three metres above the surrounding land and the barrage has far served its working year of 1981.
Many analysts say it was a problem which was waiting to burst at its seam. India is entirely responsible for repair and maintenance work and operation of the barrage, as per the bilateral agreement signed in 1954. This year, however, there have been no major repairs done.
A cash strapped ministry of water resources demand for grants show there has been no money allocated for the maintenance of flood protection work for Kosi this year. The same has been the case for 2007-08 and a paltry sum of Rs 2.5 crore being spent in 2006-07 as a part of grant-in-aid.
Flood forecasting on rivers common to India and Nepal suffer from similar fate as no amount has been assigned for such activity. The past two years have also not seen a single penny been spent on such activities. The day Nepal?s new Prime Minister Prachanda took oath of office and India was busy showing its anguish over the Nepali Prime Minister?s first visit being to China, the Kosi burst its banks and roared down to the plains of Bihar.
The government belatedly realised the seriousness of the crisis and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh described it as a ?natural calamity?. Cries of building the Kosi high dam, which will create a reservoir stretching from Sunsari to Ramechhap in Nepal, has now renewed. For the year 2008-09 not a single penny has been earmarked by the government for the survey and investigation of Kosi high dam project. The same was the fate in 2007-08. In 2006-07 an amount of Rs 5.19 crore was spent on the project. About 40 million hectare or nearly 1/8th of India?s geographical area is flood-prone. The plains of north Bihar are some of the most susceptible areas in India, prone to flooding.
Kosi river has changed its course, now flowing through a fresh channel some 120 km to the east, which has no levees or protective embankments. The worst hit districts are Araria, Madhepura, Supaul and Purnea. Drained by two major rivers, the Kosi and Gandak, and several smaller systems such as Burhi Gandak, Baghmati and Kamla-Balan, the plains of north Bihar have experienced extensive and frequent loss of life and property over the last several decades.
The Kosi river is well-known in India for rapid and frequent avulsions of its course and the extensive flood damages it causes almost every year.
The river is one of the major tributaries of the Ganga, and rises in the Nepal Himalayas. After traversing through the Nepal Himalayas, it enters India near Bhimnagar. Thereafter, it flows through the plains of north Bihar and joins Ganga near Kursela, after traversing for 320 km from Chatra. The river has been causing a lot of destruction by lateral movement and extensive flooding.
As its waters carry heavy silt load and the river has a steep gradient, the river has a tendency to move sideways. Experts say in about 200 years the river has moved laterally by about 150 km.
To check the lateral movement as well as for flood control, embankments on both sides of the river were constructed, 5 to 16 km apart. Although this has confined the lateral shift of the river within the embankments, flooding could not be controlled.
