Agreements & MOUs - The Ganga: Water Use in the Indian Subcontinent - page 156

- Bhagirathi-Hooghly, the Bhairab-Jalangi, and the Mathabhanga-Churni once car-
ried substantial flow of the parent river, the Ganga-Padma but they were dying in the
natural cycle with their mouths shut by silt. The same natural process was drying the
Gorai-Madhumati of Bangladesh and could dry it more, even if the Farakka barrage
was not constructed in 1975 and all its water could flow toward the sea. Therefore,
the decay of these rivers was not beneficial to either country and Bangladesh cannot
claim the entire water of the river for development of the Gorai-Madhumati and the
region on either side. This is another justification for the construction of Farakka
Barrage to develop water resources in this region.
Effects of the Agreement on India
Before the induction of upland discharge through the feeder canal into the
Bhagirathi, the flow in the river was extremely irregular, quite high from mid-
July to mid-September but in rest of the year, nominal, or nil. Soon afterward,
the river's morphology began to change; its width, depth, cross-sectional area and
cubic capacity improved up to 1977 but from next year, these began to reduce. In
2 1 / 2 years - fromMay 1975 to December 1977, the capacity for net tonnage handling
of materials in Calcutta Port got a boost. Prolonged flow from upland deepened the
channel and increased navigable depths up to the estuary below, required less dredg-
ing and the salinity in water in the port area went low. The entire river complex was
in a state of flux and adjusted to the new morphological parameters. This took time,
natural for a mighty river, because at least five years of ceaseless flow of 40,000
cusecs through the Bhagirathi-Hooghly, as recommended by experts, could improve
it in all fronts, but this was not to be owing to chinks in the Agreement. The average
decade-long discharge through the Farakka feeder canal and below from May 1975
to May 1985 figures in Table 10.3.
The Table 10.3 shows that though the percentage share of water in 1976 and
1977 i.e. before the Agreement, between India (River Bhagirathi) and Bangladesh
(the Ganga) for the leanest period from March to May, from 46 to 48 for India
and from 52 to 54 for Bangladesh, it fell to 36 to 40 for India between 1979 and
1985 (The agreement was partly implemented in 1978). Major flow was allowed
for Bangladesh in the leanest months, the percentage varying from 60 to 64. The
distribution of the total flow in these years has been shown in Table 8.2 ante. After
the agreement period, 1980 was the driest year and the discharge in March and
April was abnormally low. The minimum discharge was 1,058 cumecs, or 37,353
cusecs on 3rd April 1980 and India's share on that day was 304 cumecs, or 10,743
cusecs, which was about 29% of the total flow only. It was below 1,132 cumecs, or
40,000 cusecs, for 11 days from 24th to 27th March and from 31st March to 6th
April 1980. The average percent share in the leanest months, March to May in 1980
between India and Bangladesh was 36 and 64 and in the full lean season, January to
June, it was 32 and 68, respectively. The large difference in share that year shows the
extent of compromise by India under the agreement, sacrificing national interest and