A presentation on Teesta River ...

1. Water Discharge OfTeesta
River In Bangladesh :
The Reality

2. Objectives Of The Study
•Analyse the trend of water discharge of
teesta river after the construction of
Gazaldoba Barrage by India
•Comparing the past and present
discharge pattern of teesta river in
Bangladesh
•Comparison of the seasonal variance of
discharge
•Impact of uneven pattern of water
discharge

3. •Origin: Pauhunri glacier, Zemu Glacier, Lake
Cholamu, Lake Gurudongmar
•Location: Sikkim, India; Elevation: 7,068 m
(23,189 ft)
•Countries: India (83%), Bangladesh(17%)
•State: Sikkim, West Bengal, Rangpur
•Length: 309 sq. Km (192mi)
•Basin Area: 12,540 km2 (4,842 sq mi)
(Alford ,1992)
.
Introducing teesta
river
Teesta is the
fourth main
river in terms
of discharge
in Bangladesh
(Alford 1992)

4. Historically, the Teesta was part of
the Ganges river system, flowing
south from Jalpaiguri in West
Bengal in three separate channels:
the Karatoya, the Purnabhaba,
and the Atrai.
The Teesta is flowing through
the five northern districts of
Bangladesh
The total teesta riverine area
comprises 35 upazilas and 5427
villages, with an estimated
population of 9.15 million in
2011 (Prasai & Surie ,2013).
Introducing teesta river

5. Major Projects On teesta
river
• Gazaldoba Barrage : India
constructed the Gazaldoba Barrage
in 1982 and started diverting its
water for irrigation and transfer to
the Mahananda River.
For Diverting Water from Teesta
River the Teesta Mahananda Link
Canal (27.5 km) was constructed
. (Strategic Foresight Group 2013).
Constructed By India
Apart from Gazoldba Barrage India
also constructed
• Teesta -V dam,
• Rangit III hydroelectric project .
Tessta Mahananda Link canal –where
water is diverted from teesta

6. Constructed By Bangladesh
Source : Bangladesh Water
Development Board (2015)
Teesta Barrage is located on Teesta
river at Duani in Hatibandha
upazila in Lalmonirhat district of
Bangladesh.
• The barrage is a 615m long
concrete structure fitted with 44
radial gates having a discharge
capacity of 12,750 cusec of
water.
• It is used to divert 280 cusec of
water for irrigation through a
canal taking off on the right
bank. (Khalid ,2013 )
The gross benefited area
of the project is 750,000
ha, of which 540,000 ha is
irrigable. (ADB,2005)
Do you know ?????
The Teesta Barrage is the largest
irrigation project in the country
Source : Bangladesh Water
Development Board (2015)

7. Discharge Trend Before Constructing
Gazaldoba Barrage
Historically, the Teesta River had a balanced
average maximum flow of 280 000 cusec and a
minimum of 10 000 cusec at Dalia, upstream of
the Teesta Barrage in Bangladesh (Khalid 2013).
The peak Discharge was about 5000 m3/sec in
1972. (Khalid 2013).

8. Trend Of Discharge After
Gazaldoba Barrage
Teesta River water flow condition till 1994 was in a balance
condition compared to the water flow condition of 1979.
After the year of 1994 conspicuous decrease
of water flow condition at Dalia point was noticed.
Discharge of the Teesta River has been decreasing over the last
22 years-
The peak discharge has come down from 5000 m3/sec in
1972 to approximately 2200 m3/sec in 1998 showing a
downward trend that even declines 140m3/sec in the lean
months. (Khalid 2013).
Excessive control has made about 1000 cusec and even 500
cusec during droughts in Bangladesh (Khalid 2013).
Earlier 2016 water discharge just 232 cubic feet per second
(cusec), the lowest ever in particular a day (Indo-Bangla
Joint River Commission –JRC,2016).

9. Trend Of Discharge After
Gazaldoba Barrage
This gradual decrease water flow trends became worst in
the year of 2010 when it was near 1.5%. As the water flow
condition is going down day by day, so it will be dry in
most recent years (Afroz and Rahman , 2010)
(Afroz and Rahman , 2010)

10. Trend Of Discharge After
Gazaldoba (cont)
Seasonal Variation
(Afroz and Rahman , 2010)

11. rend Of Discharge After Gazaldoba Bar
( Con.)
After the operation of Gajoldoba Barrage started the flow in
Teesta River became significantly low which increased after
the Teesta Barrage operation started in Bangladesh. This is
because after the construction of Teesta Barrage water stored
in the monsoon could be used in the dry season.
During the dry months (November to May) of a year the
discharges are found to be decreasing after the operation of
Gajoldoba Barrage by India. A decrease of about 88% is found
after the operation of this Barrage, but which increased up to
2.5 times after the operation of Teesta Barrage.
(Afroz and Rahman , 2010)
(Afroz and Rahman , 2010)
Low ammount Of Discharge In Dry Season

12. (Afroz and Rahman , 2010)

13. The trend Of Discharge After Gazaldob
Barrage
( Cont. )
It is evident that there is always an increasing trend in case of
maximum discharge during June to October when Bangladesh
already remains flooded with water. After construction of
Gajoldoba Barrage and even after the Teesta Barrage, Bangladesh
gets an increasing amount of water.
The maximum values were found in the months of August and
September
Maximum Discharge In June –October
(Afroz and Rahman , 2010)

14. (Afroz and Rahman , 2010)

15. Reasons behind the water
discharge variations
Anthropogenic causes are mainly responsible
for the variation in Teesta river water discharge
which experiences both scarcity and excessive
water flows.
The major reasons are including-
Unusual building of barrages over the river
Establishment of huge Hydroelectric Projects &
Dams
Unilateral diversion of water flow
Sudden withdrawal and release of water
Excessive controls over the river.
(Asia Foundation , 2013)

16. Comparison Between Past and Present Water
Discharge
5000 Cusec In 1972
Construction Of
Gazaldoba Barrage In
1982
Present Condition
1000 cusec (
Average)
Even 500 cusec
during drought
(Khalid 2013).

17. •Long Term
•Short Term
Impacts Of
Uneven
Water
Discharge

18. Short Term Impact
During incessant rain, Gajoldoba
barrage opens up the gates which
causes flood in Bangladesh. During
monsoon, due to flood and excessive
rain, in the Year 2008-09, there was a
loss of 65567 metric ton HYV Aman in
Rangpur district. In 2010-11, flood and
rush of water caused a loss of 12,580
metric ton Aman in the same district.
(BBS, 2015).
Reduction in the Agricultural Production
due to insufficient water discharge.
. In 1997, Aman HYV production was 4
million tons, which has reduced to 2571033
metric tons in 2013-14. In 1998, a decrease
in water flow left 75% of the land
uncultivable, mainly prepared for
cultivating IRRI paddy. (BBS, 2015).

19. Long Term Impact
1. 25% of the fertile agricultural land of northern
Bangladesh will become wasteland due to shortage of
water
2. 6 million lives would be affected through
environmental and economic ruin
3. An estimated annual economic loss of over half a
billion dollars in agricultural,
fisheries, navigation and industries
(Islam , 2015)

20. Our Demand to Revive
Teesta River
Negotiations on how to share the water have been going
on since 1983.
A 2011 interim deal - that was supposed to last 15 years -
gave India 42.5 % of the Teesta's waters and gave
Bangladesh 37.5 %. But, west Bengal govt is not ready to
give more than 25%.
At least 3,200 cusec of water flow will be necessary to support
the ecosystems in the river, which should be allowed to flow at
any time throughout the year.
The remaining water should be divided proportionally to the need of
the people living in Bangladesh and India.
(The daily Star ,2011)
(The daily Star ,2011)

21. Conclusions
The Teesta is going to embrace the fate of the Aral Sea
project in Russia and Irtsh-Karaganda Canal in
Kazakhstan which have been proved to be ecological
disasters of water management.(Prodip,2009).
Without the willingness of policy makers , it seems
impossible to save teesta from future anhilition .

22. References
1. Afroz, R. & Rahman, M.A., 2013, ‘Transboundary river water for Ganges and Teesta rivers in Bangladesh: An assessment’, Global Science and Technology Journal 1(1), 100–
111.
2. Khalid, A.R.M., 2013, ‘Water negotiations in the Ganges-Brahmaputra-Meghna Basin-“multilateral” is the way forward’, in A.M. Feroze, Md. Khalequzzaman & T. Ahmed
(eds.), Water resources in South Asia: Conflict to cooperation, Proceedings of the International Conference on Water Resources of South Asia – Conflict to Cooperation (IC
WRSA CC), Bangladesh Poribesh Andolon (BAPA) and Bangladesh Environment Network (BEN), Dhaka, Bangladesh, January 04–05.
3. Prasai, S. & Surie, M.D., 2013, Political economy analysis of the Teesta River Basin, The Asia Foundation, New Delhi.
4. Rasheed, K.B.S., 2008, Bangladesh: Resource and environmental profile, A H Development Publishing House, Dhaka.
5. Strategic Foresight Group, 2013, Rivers of peace – Restructuring India Bangladesh relations, Strategic Foresight Group, Mumbai, viewed 02 February 2016,
from http://www.strategicforesight.com/publication_pdf/22345riversofpeace-website.pdf
6. Haque, A.E., Aich, D., Subhani, R., Bari, E.& Diyan, M.A.A., 2014, Tale of a Tamed River: The value of Ecosystem Services of Teesta River – An estimate of value of provisional
services in agriculture and fisheries, IUCN and Asian Center for Development, Dhaka.
7. Mullick, R.A., Babel, M.S. & Perret, S.R., 2010, ‘Flow characteristics and environmental flow requirements for the Teesta River, Bangladesh’, in Proceedings of International
Conference on Environmental Aspects of Bangladesh (ICEAB10), Fukuoka, Japan, September 04, 2010, pp. 159–162.
8. Ahmed, M., (2007), ‘Regional Co-Operation on Transboundary Water Resources Management:Opportunities and Challenges’, Conference of Bangladesh Economic
Association, Dhaka, Bangladesh.
9. Salman, M.A.S., and Uprety, K., (2002), Conflict and Cooperation on South Asia’sInternational Rivers: A Legal Perspective. Washington, DC: The World Bank.
10. Rashid, H.U., 2012, ‘Teesta water issue: A few hard facts’, The Daily Star, 11 January, viewed 29 January 2016, from http://www.thedailystar.net/news-detail-217791
11. The Daily Star (2011) What Happened to Teesta Water, The Daily Star, September 27
12. The Daily Prothom Alo (2017) Teesta’s Deep Water Dilemma, The Daily Prothom Alo, May 18
13. BBS (2015) Yearbook of Agricultural Statistics, 27th series, Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics, Ministry of Planning, Government of Bangladesh
14. Islam, M.F.(2016) Water Use and Poverty Reduction, New Frontiers in Regional Science: Asian Perspectives 8, Japan: Springer, Doi: DOI 10.1007/978-4-431-55172-0_2