Damodar Valley Corporation(DVC)- Dhanbad

Damodar Valley Corporation (DVC) is a public sector power generator which operates in the Damodar River area of West Bengal and Jharkhand states of India to handle the Damodar Valley Project, the first multipurpose river valley project of independent India. Indian Astrophysicist Meghnad Saha, the former chief architect of river planning in India, prepared the original plan for the Damodar Valley Project. The statutory corporation operates both thermal power stations and hydel power stations under the ownership of Ministry of Power, Government of India. DVC is headquartered in the Kolkata city of West Bengal, India.

History

1955 postal stamp
The valley of the Damodar River was flood prone and the devastating flood of 1943, lead to the formation of the high-powered “Damodar Flood Enquiry Committee” by the government of Bengal. The committee recommended the formation of a body similar to the Tennessee Valley Authority of the United States. Subsequently, W.L. Voorduin, a senior engineer of TVA, was appointed to study the problem. He suggested the multi-purpose development of the valley as a whole in 1944. Damodar Valley Corporation was set up in 1948 as “the first multipurpose river valley project of independent India.”

D V C Headquarter in Kolkata
DVC was formed with the central government and the governments of Bihar (later Jharkhand) and West Bengal participating in it. The main aims of the corporation were flood control, irrigation, generation and transmission of electricity, and year-round navigation. The corporation was also expected to provide indirect support for the over-all development of the region. However, while Voorduin had proposed the construction of eight dams, DVC built only four.

Mr. Voorduin’s “Preliminary Memorandum” suggested a multipurpose development plan designed for achieving flood control, irrigation, power generation and navigation in the Damodar Valley. Four consultants appointed by the Government of India examined it. They also approved the main technical features of Voorduin’s scheme and recommended early initiation of construction beginning with Tilaiya to be followed by Maithon. By April 1947, full agreement was practically reached between the three Governments of Central, West Bengal and Bihar on the implementation of the scheme and in March 1948, the Damodar Valley Corporation Act (Act No. XIV of 1948) was passed by the Central Legislature, requiring the three Governments, The Central Government and the State Governments of West Bengal and Bihar to participate jointly for the purpose of building the Damodar Valley Corporation. The Corporation came into existence on 7 July 1948 as the first multipurpose river valley project of independent India.

The first dam was built across the Barakar River at Tilaiya and inaugurated in 1953. The second dam, Konar Dam, across the Konar River was inaugurated in 1955. The third dam across the Barakar River at Maithon was inaugurated in 1957. The fourth dam across the Damodar at Panchet was inaugurated in 1959. Durgapur Barrage was built in 1955, with a 136.8 kilometres (85.0 mi) long left bank main canal and an 88.5 kilometres (55.0 mi) long right bank main canal.

Command area: 24,235 km2 spread across the Damodar basin. Jharkhand: 2 districts fully (Dhanbad and Bokaro) and parts of 9 districts (Hazaribagh, Koderma, Chatra, Ramgarh, Palamau, Ranchi, Lohardaga, Giridih, and Dumka) West Bengal: 6 districts (Purba Bardhhaman, Paschim Bardhhaman, Hooghly, Howrah, Bankura and Purulia)

Unnamed Road, Barmasia, Dhanbad, Jharkhand 828124