Bisalpur dam, Tonk Rajasthan

Bisalpur dam is built on the Banas river in the Tonk district of Rajasthan. It is constructed from concrete. This dam the thirst of many cities including Jaipur, Tonk, Ajmer and meets the needs of irrigation. Bisalpur is a village situated in the Tonk district of Rajasthan and it is for the ancient temple of Lord Gokarneshwar It is famous. Bisalpur dam built on the river Banaspur is the second attraction of Tonk, which brings this village into the discussion. This dam is built in two stages. The objective of the first phase was to provide drinking water to the people of the village, while the second step was to improve irrigation facilities. This dam is 574 meters long and 39.5 meters high.

History Of Bisalpur Dam

The Bisalpur dam was constructed in 1990 by the Rajasthan state government. During the construction, the people displaced by the dam protested against the state government's rehabilitation and resettlement policy, calling it unjust.

In October 1999, the CM Ashok Gehlot-led Congress government sanctioned a project to bring the Bisalpur reservoir water to the state capital Jaipur. However, the project could not be implemented because of financial constraints. In 2004, the CM Vasundhara Raje-led BJP government started the construction of a pipeline to bring Bisalpur water to Jaipur.

Bisalpur Dam

Bisalpur dam, Tonk Rajasthan

The project was co-financed by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA).

ADB financed the transmission system (including purification), while JICA financed the transfer system with an 8.88 billion yen 30-year loan at an interest rate of 1.3%.

The project was opposed by farmers relying on the Bisalpur dam water for irrigation. On the 13 June 2005, five farmers were shot dead while protesting the diversion of Bisalpur water to Jaipur.

The Bisalpur dam water reached Jaipur in the year 2009, leading to public protests in surrounding districts like Ajmer, Bhilwara, Dausa and Tonk, whose residents demanded a share of the water

बीसलपुर बांध

Bisalpur dam, Tonk Rajasthan

The Bisalpur dam reservoir supplies irrigation water to the Sawai Madhopur and Tonk districts. It also supplies drinking water to the Ajmer, Jaipur and Tonk districts.

From Nasirabad in Ajmer district, the drinking water is also transported to the Bhilwara district via a 15-wagon train, which can carry 2.5 million liters of water.

"The reservoir has been called the lifeline of the state capital Jaipur."

Currently, around half of the areas under the Jaipur Municipal Corporation get water from Bisalpur. In the year 2016, the Public Health and Engineering Department (PHED) proposed a ₹ 9.5 billion project to supply the Bisalpur water to the remaining areas of the city.

In the year 2016, the almost-dry Pushkar Lake was filled with water from the Bisalpur reservoir for the annual Pushkar Fair.