In open defiance of Himachal Pradesh High Court orders, the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) and the Railways are still dumping landslide debris and muck into rivers and rivulets along the Kiratpur–Manali highway. The dumping is happening directly into the Bhakra dam reservoir and the Beas river.
The Fourlane Visthapit and Prabhavit Samiti (FVPS), a Bilaspur-based group working for people displaced due to highway projects, has complained to the Bilaspur Deputy Commissioner and the Forest Department with proof of the illegal dumping in the Bhakra dam.
According to the group, the debris came from landslides that have hit the Kiratpur–Manali highway in the past over two months. Tippers hired by NHAI are transporting the muck from Mauza Sunan in Naina Devi sub-division and dumping it into the Gobind Sagar lake near a hotel in Mauza Dharadsani, Jhanduta subdivision.
The Fourlane Visthapit and Prabhavit Samiti said debris was also being dumped along the highway in Kothipura, Tunnu Dhaliyar near tunnel No. 3, Kyarian Jungle and Thapna. The NHAI also dumped landslide debris along the Kiratpur-Manali highway at many places and without retaining walls, the muck is sliding straight into the Bhakra reservoir.
Work on the Bhanupali–Bilaspur–Beri rail line is also polluting the dam. At Bharari, the Railways built a cofferdam – a temporary structure on the bank of the Bhakra reservoir to create a dry work zone – for bridge construction between tunnel portals. But the structure and the muck filled into it sank into the lake after heavy rains raised water levels.
The cofferdam was constructed to build bridges that would connect Railways tunnel No. 16 Portal-1 with tunnel No. 15 Portal-2. "The Railways dumped muck in the cofferdam to make the wetland dry for building bridges. However, as the water level increased due to heavy rainfall, all the muck submerged in the river along with the cofferdam," said FVPS general secretary Madan Sharma.
He added that muck dumping has polluted the Bhakra dam, reduced fish production, and hit local livelihoods. “This continuous muck dumping is also posing a threat to the very existence of the reservoir. Moreover, the illegal muck-dumping is happening in violation of high court orders,” Sharma said.
Similar dumping is happening in the Beas river and its rivulets along the highway between Pandoh and Aut in Mandi district, where more than 30 landslides occurred this monsoon.
“The NHAI is notorious for dumping muck unscientifically and illegally in the rivers and rivulets. As there are neither designated sites for dumping landslide debris in the Pandoh area, nor are there any legal provisions for creating such sites in the highway project DPRs, the NHAI disposes of muck into the rivers and rivulets,” said Kullu-based environmentalist Guman Singh.
"There is a dire need for including provisions for creating dumping sites in the event of disaster, including landslides in the DPRs of highway projects. Muck-dumping is the top reason behind the flooding of the Beas river and resultant losses, as we have seen in 2023 and this year," he added.
It is pertinent to mention that the high court had last year criticised both NHAI and state departments for failing to stop illegal dumping in the Bhakra dam and forest areas. It ordered strict action, directed agencies to remove muck already dumped, and even prompted Bilaspur police to file eight FIRs against contractors working on the Kiratpur–Manali highway.
Yet, the illegal dumping continues.
The Railways’ contractor, Dilip Buildcon Ltd, was fined Rs 85.87 lakh by the Himachal Pradesh State Pollution Control Board last year for illegal muck dumping. But the company has only paid Rs 29.25 lakh. The balance Rs 56.62 lakh is still unpaid even after more than a year. The High Court recently expressed concern over the delay in payment.
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