The left bank of the main canal of Tillari Dam, a joint irrigation project of Maharashtra and Goa government, developed cracks on Sunday morning, resulting in the stoppage of water supply to Goa.
The breach occurred at Maneri, Dhangarwadi in Maharashtra’s Dodamarg taluka, resulting in water gushing into nearby farm fields and plantations.
As the canal breached, the soil continued to collapse along with the overgrown bushes. Fifty to sixty meters of the embankment also collapsed due to a strong flow of water following which water from the dam had to be stopped.
Even though the water supply was shut off, the water kept flowing from the canal till about 10 am in morning. The Tillari project officials as well as revenue department officials rushed to the spot and shut off the water supply. The Tillari dam provides raw water to the Assonora treatment plant.
Earlier, the left main canal of the dam was breached at Sateli in Bhedshi Khanyale in the neighbouring state in January. According to locals, frequent breaches in the Tillari canal is a result of the poor quality of work carried out. Many alleged that crores have been spent on the repair works in the last 30 years but nothing seems to have been done at the site. The left and right canals of the Tillari dam have been constructed many years back and are in dilapidated condition.