Prakasam Barrage

Prakasam Barrage
Location of Prakasam Barrage in Andhra Pradesh
Country	India
Location	Vijayawada, Krishna district, Andhra Pradesh
Coordinates	16°30′22″N 80°36′18″E
Purpose	Irrigation & Water supply
Status	Operational
Construction began	1852
Opening date	1855
Owner(s)	Government of Andhra Pradesh
Dam and spillways
Type of dam	Barrage
Impounds	Krishna River
Length	1,223.5 m (4,014 ft)
Website irrigationap.cgg.gov.in/wrd/dashBoard

The Prakasam Barrage stretches 1223.5 m across the Krishna River connecting Krishna and Guntur districts. The barrage serves also as a road bridge and spans over a lake. The three canals associated with the barrage run through the city of Vijayawada, crossing it and giving it a Venetian appearance.

View of Barrage from boating area

The idea of constructing a dam across the river Krishna dates back to 1798. It began in the hands of captain Buckle and was revised in 1839 and 1841 by Captain Best and Captain Lake. After the endorsement of Major Cotton, the board of Directors of the East India Company approved it on 5 January 1850. The dam was started in 1852 and completed in 1855. It cost Rs 1.75 crore in those days and seems to have paid the then government a return of 18%. It used to irrigate 7 lakh acres. Later, the State Government constructed a bridge that was named after Tanguturi Prakasam, the first Chief Minister of Andhra (a state formed in 1953, which later became Andhra Pradesh in 1956 after the merger of Telugu speaking districts of former Hyderabad State). Completed in 1957, it helps to irrigate over 1.2 million acres of land. This barrage also supplies water to Buckingham canal which was initially constructed as an inland navigation canal but was later used as an irrigation water supply canal. One of the first major irrigation projects of South India, the Prakasam Barrage in Vijayawada was completely successful in its mission.

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  Night view of Prakasam Barrage

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  Lake side view of Prakasam Barrage

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  Prakasam barrage from Krishnaveni idol

Andhra Pradesh largely owes its rich agriculture to the Prakasam Barrage as the project facilitated the irrigation of large tracts of farmland. The Barrage provides views of the lake. It has become a tourist attraction of Vijayawada. On 13th Feb-2019 Andhra Pradesh chief minister Nara Chandrababu Naidu laid foundation to construct a new barrage named Vykuntapuram Barrage on krishna river nearly 25 km upstream of Prakasam Barrage.

Godavari Penna Linking

Project Name	FRL	Creast Level	MDDL	Tail Race Level	Power Generation		Reservoir Area In km2	Storage capacity In TMC
					Capacity	Type of Turbines		Gross	Live	Dead
Srisailam Project	269.75 M (885 Ft)	252.98 M (830 Ft)	214.88 M (705 Ft)	163 M (535 Ft)	1670 MW	Francis Turbines	541.9	215.8	178.7	3.42
Nagarjuna Sagar	179.83 M (590 Ft)	166.42 M (546 Ft)	155.45 M (510 Ft)	73.15 M (240 Ft)	816 MW	Francis Turbines	285	312	181
Nagarjuna Sagar Tail pond	75 M (246 Ft)			48.33 M (158.56 Ft)	50 MW	Kaplan Turbines
Pulichinthala Project	53.34 M (175 Ft)	36.34 M (119.23 Ft)		20 M (65.6 Ft)	120 MW	Kaplan Turbines	144	45.77	36.23	3.61
Vykuntapuram Barrage	25 M (82 Ft)	17 M (55.77 Ft)						10

See also

• List of dams and reservoirs in India
• Andhra Pradesh