Dam failures are always catastrophic, especially on the downstream side, resulting in a colossal loss of life and property. Analyze the various causes of dam failures. Give two examples of large dam failures.
Question source: synopsisias.com
Write a timed answer in the appCurrent affairs to use in your answer
Expert panel backs green clearance for the Subansiri Upper hydro project · 26 September 2026 · Covers one part · use it in the conclusion
Use it to conclude that dam safety and downstream risk must be built into clearance of new large dams, especially in seismic Himalayan basins.
- NHPC's 1,605 MW Subansiri Upper project involves a 237-metre dam in a young, earthquake-prone mountain range, upstream of Assam on a major Brahmaputra tributary.
- Downstream, construction of the 2,000 MW Subansiri Lower was stalled by protests from 2011 over dam safety and downstream impact; an independent review under the Dam Safety Act, 2021 is suggested.
Centre asks Himalayan States to step up monitoring of glacial lakes and avalanche zones · 4 September 2026 · Covers one part · use it in the example
Cite the Chungthang breach to show that external hazards like glacial lake outbursts are a cause of dam failure in the Himalaya.
- In October 2023 the South Lhonak glacial lake in Sikkim burst, and the flood down the Teesta breached the Chungthang dam.
- GLOFs are sudden releases of water held by a glacier or moraine; heavy rain, ice or rock avalanches, landslides and earthquakes can breach such natural dams.
- Remedies: NDMA's October 2020 GLOF guidelines cover lake mapping, early warning, lake lowering and community training; risk assessment is also needed for all infrastructure downstream of glacial lakes.
Bihar floods despite a 27% rain deficit, and the Ganga, not Nepal, is behind it · 11 September 2026 · Covers one part · use it in the example
River structures in Bihar show how barrages and embankments create downstream and upstream hazards, supporting the causes part of the answer.
- Critics say the Farakka Barrage, operational since 1975 to divert Ganga water to the Hooghly, traps silt upstream, raising flood frequency in Bihar.
- Bihar's more than 3,730 km of embankments raise river beds through silt deposition; the 2008 Kosi embankment breach shows how such structures can fail suddenly.
- Policy point: manage sediment at and above Farakka and strengthen flood forecasting on the Ganga main stem, not only on Nepal-fed rivers.
Six States sign the Kishau dam pact on the Tons; Centre to bear about 90% of the cost · 16 September 2026 · Covers one part · use it in the conclusion
Kishau, a very tall dam in the seismic Himalaya upstream of Delhi, lets you argue that new storage must build in safety review from the start.
- Kishau will be a 232.6-metre concrete gravity dam on the Tons on the Himachal Pradesh-Uttarakhand border, a seismic Himalayan setting.
- Concerns flagged with the project include seismic and safety risk, displacement and rehabilitation, and cost escalation before construction begins.
- Way forward: independent safety review and transparent monitoring for Kishau under the Dam Safety Act framework.