The canal is among the greatest civil engineering feats in the world, and will help green the vast strip of desert land located in western Rajasthan, bordering Pakistan. The main canal, earlier called the Rajasthan Canal and renamed as Indira ghandi canal in 1985 in honor of the slain Indian prime minister, is 649 kilometers (km) long.

One of the most gigantic projects in the world The longest canal in India The largest irrigation project in the world

It is the world's 17th largest desert, The world's 9th largest subtropical desert.  Area 376470 km2 About 85% of the Thar Desert is in India, and the remaining 15% in

Pakistan. 

The Thar Desert, also known as the Great Indian Desert, is a large, arid region in the northwestern part of the Indian subcontinent that forms a natural boundary between India and Pakistan.

In India, it covers about 320,000 km2 (of which 60% is in Rajasthan (192000 km2) and extends into Gujarat, Punjab, and Haryana. This desert comprises a very dry part, the Marusthali region in the west, and a semi-desert region in the east with less sand dunes and slightly more precipitation.

THAR DESERT

The idea of bringing the waters from the Himalayan rivers flowing through Punjab and into Pakistan was conceived by an hydraulic engineer in the late 194Os, soon after India became independent following 200 years of British mis-rule. Engineer Kanwar Sain proposed that 2 million hectares of desertland in Bikaner and the northwest comer of Iaisalmer could be brought under irrigation from the stored waters of the Punjab rivers.

Soon thereafter, a feasibility study was conducted by the Central Water Commission, a government body in charge of water survey and allocation. In its brief report, the Central Water Commission spelled out the necessity of building a canal through the western Rajasthan desert which will provide new habitation over 2 million hectares.

To convert the concept to reality, however, it was first necessary to settle the dispute between India and Pakistan over allocation of the Indus River system's waters. In 1957, India and Pakistan mutually settled the dispute by signing the Indus Water Treaty which gave India the right to'use waters of three rivers-the Sutlej, Beas, and Ravi.

As per an interstate agreement reached earlier in 1955 between the Indian states of Punjab and Rajasthan, the latter was allocated 8 million acre-feet of water. The proposed Rajasthan Canal envisaged use of 7.6 million acre-feet of water.

KANWAR SAIN

drought proofing providing drinking water improvement of environment afforestation employment rehabilitation development and projection of animal wealth and increasing agricultural produce

1. The Indira Gandhi Canal is one of the biggest canal project in India

2. Irrigation facilities to the north-western region of Rajasthan, a part of the Thar Desert

3. It starts from the Harike Barrage at Sultanpur, a few kilometers below the confluence of the Ravi and Beas rivers in Punjab state

4. It consists of the Rajasthan feeder canal, with the first 170 km in Punjab and Haryana and the remaining 34 km in Rajasthan (Total 204 km) and 445 km of the Rajasthan main canal which is entirely within Rajasthan. Total length of the canal is 649 km.

5. This canal enters into Haryana from Punjab near Lohgarh village of Haryana,then running in western part of district Sirsa it enters into Rajasthan near Kharakhera village of Rajasthan

6. The IGNP traverses seven districts of Rajasthan: Barmer, Bikaner, Churu, Hanumangarh, Jaisalmer, Jodhpur, and Sriganganagar

7. The canal terminates near Jaisalmer in Rajasthan

Rajasthan Canal(Indira Gandhi Canal) in Thar desert flowing near Sattasar village, Bikaner district,Rajasthan

Stage I consists of 393km –1. 204 km long feeder canal, having a headworks discharge

capacity of 460 m3/sec, which starts from Harike Barrage (170 km of the feeder canal lie in Punjab and Haryana and 34 km in Rajasthan) and

2. 189km long main canal (Entirely in Rajastan) and 3454 km long distribution system, is concrete and lined, and serves 553 kha of culturable command area, out of which 46 kha are served by pumping to a 60 m lift, through four pumping stations.

3. In addition to irrigation and domestic water supply through this project , it has been proposed by the Rajasthan State Electricity Board (RSEB) to install a mini hydro electric power stations, to utilise the available water fall in the canal.

Salient Features - IGNP Stage - I Major Irrigation Project

Name of the Irrigation Project IGNP Stage - IYear of Start 1958

Year of completion 1983

Type of project Major

Engineering Type of Project Storage

Purpose of Project Irrigation

Name of the River Ravi-Beas

Status Completed

State Rajasthan

International Sharing None

Approved by Planning commission(Year)

1957

Approved Cost by Planning Commission (Rs. in Crore)

110.2

Potential Utilized (Th ha) 642

District/s Benefitted Sri Ganganagar, Bikaner, Hanumangarh

Ultimate Irrigation Potential (Th ha) 525

IGNP Stage II comprises construction of a 256 km long main canal and 5,606 km of a lined distribution system, and will serve 1,410 kha of CCA (873577 ha area in flow and 537018 ha under lift), utilising 4,930 Mm3/yr of water. The main canal in the entire length was completed in the year 1986. Total length of canal system including second phase from Harrika barrage to Gadra Road in Barmer would be 9424 km.

IGNP Stage II comprises construction of a 256 km long main canal and 5,606 km of a lined distribution system, and will serve 1,410 kha of CCA (873577 ha area in flow and 537018 ha under lift), utilising 4,930 Mm3/yr of water. The main canal in the entire length was completed in the year 1986.IGNP Stage II comprises construction of a 256 km long main canal and 5,606 km of a lined distribution system, and will serve 1,410 kha of CCA (873577 ha area in flow and 537018 ha under lift), utilising 4,930 Mm3/yr of water. The main canal in the entire length was completed in the year 1986.

Salient Features - IGNP Stage – II Major Irrigation Project

Name of the Irrigation Project IGNP Stage – II Major Irrigation Project

Year of Start 1974

Completion Mid 1990s

Type of project Major

Engineering Type of Project Diversion

Purpose of Project Irrigation

Name of the River Ravi-BeasStatus completedState RajasthanProject Sharing (International/Interstate/Both) NoneProject Approved by Planning Commission (Yes/No) YesApproved by Planning commission (Year) 1998Approved Cost by Planning Commission (Rs. in Crore) 1398.91Culturable Command Area (CCA) (Th ha) 1410Gross Command Area (GCA) (Th ha) 1860Potential Utilized (Th ha) 307

District/s BenefittedSriganganagar, Barmer, Bikaner, Churu, Jaisalmer, & Jodhpur

Ultimate Irrigation Potential (Th ha) 964

Indira Gandhi Canal (Former Rajasthan Canal) 450 km main canal. 1.(i) Stage I 393 km, (ii) Stage II 256 km.

2.Rajasthan Canal takes off from Harika Barrage (capacity at the head is 523.83 m3 /s) in Punjab.

3.Total length 649 km. a. Rajasthan feeder Canal in Punjab and Haryana 204 km. b. Rajasthan Canal 445 km upto Mohanagarh in Jaislmer district.

4.Feeder canal: Top width 42.56 m.

5. Bottom width: 36.36 m. 6. Depth of flow = 6.40 m 7. Total length of canal system including second phase

from Harrika barrage to Gadra Road in Barmer would be 9424 km. (distribution system)

8. Tile lining: Single tile lining 30.5 cm * 15.2 cm * 5.1 cm, on 1 cm thick cement mortar layer of 1: 5.

The total length of the canal system, from its headworks in Punjab to the tail end at Gadra Road, is 9,425 km-almost twice the combined length and breadth of India.

If stored in the form of a pyramid with a 1,200-foot (364.7 m) square base, the earthwork done for the canal would be higher than Mount Everest (29,000 ft./8.82 km).

Some 3.4 billion concrete tiles were used to line the canal-enough tiles to encircle the earth along the equator with a two-lane highway, with each lane 12 feet wide.

The maximum number of people involved in canal construction at any time was 40,000, aided by hundreds of camels and donkeys.

Thnx all