New Delhi: Fifty-six years after first Prime Minister of India Jawaharlal Nehru inaugurated the Sardar Sarovar Dam, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday dedicated the highest embankment on a river in the country to the nation, said media reports.
Originally commissioned in 2006, the Sardar Sarovar Dam’s height was recently raised to 138.68 metres. The increased height would enable the Sardar Sarovar Dam to store 4.73 million acre feet (MAF) of water.
The Sardar Sarovar Dam has been built on the Narmada that originates in Madhya Pradesh and passes through Gujarat and Maharashtra. The Narmada forms some portions of borders between Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra, and also between Gujarat and Maharashtra before entering the Arabian Sea.
River Narmada is hailed as the lifeline of Gujarat and the Sardar Sarovar Dam with its increased height is expected to change the fortunes for the state.
PM Narendra Modi decided to dedicate this mega project to the nation on his birthday, which is also being celebrated as Seva Diwas by the BJP. The party hopes to reap good electoral dividends in the Gujarat Assembly elections slated for later this year.
