The Chennai ecological disaster has begun to cast its long shadow on Amaravati, the new capital of Andhra Pradesh.
Experts are now beginning to think that after all it was not a great idea to locate the new capital in the delta region.
Amaravati will be on the right bank of the river Krishna and the problem is much of the new capital will be located on land that was criss crossed by the river earlier.
Almost all rivers change their course over decades. Though the river shifts, it leaves below `paleochannels' where water flows below the surface. In the event of heavy rains, there is the threat of land subsidence and these places are also prone to flooding.
The AP capital will be built up in an area covering over 33,000 acres.The loss of greenery in what is essentially rich farmland and its concretization will lead to an ecological disaster, warn experts.
“The Chennai deluge should serve as an eye-opener. Chennai has been flooded because natural waterways like rivers were allowed to be obstructed by indiscriminate constructions. The government should utilise high resolution satellite imagery data to pinpoint the floodplains and paleochannels in Amaravati before taking up the construction of the mega city ,“ says Srikonda Ramesh, dean of studies and head of the department of architecture at the School of Planning and Architecture (SPA) in Vijayawada.
Ramesh suggests that the area in the vicinity of the paleochannels should be left vacant and developed into a greenbelt or open pathways.
“No construction should be allowed over the paleochannels and they should be left free for the groundwater to recharge,“ he adds.
Alok Kumar, a scientist with the Geological Survey of India (GSI), also stresses that paleochannels should be left untouched.
Kumar, who conducted a study on the sudden formation of sinkholes in Kadapa district following heavy rains last month, points out that the area should be thoroughly examined geologically before building large structures.
Chennai with three rivers and the Buckingham canal could not take the torrential downpour, thanks to encroachments and haphazard growth of the city.
Amaravati, on the other hand, has only one river and the Krishna western main canal. If the new capital city grows as projected, it will not be able to absorb more than 20 cm of rainfall in a day. The outfall drains from Amaravati into the Krishna will be unable to empty themselves as the river itself will be in spate during monsoon.
Incidentally, all the paleochannels in Amaravati hold fresh water fit for drinking while the groundwater present elsewhere in the region has become saline and unsuitable for drinking and agriculture.Experts warn that there will be severe shortage of potable groundwater in Amaravati if the paleochannels are obstructed.
However, given the fact that the contractors' lobby is very strong, it is unlikely that buildings and constructions will not come up on these paleochannels.
Source: TimesOfIndia
