Bilaspur, Himachal Pradesh
Bilaspur is a small district of Himachal Pradesh. It is on the banks of Govind Sagar Lake. Bilaspur is also known from Khelur. The town of Bilaspur was founded in 1663.
Famous places to visit
The Koldam Hydropower Station commonly known as Koldam, is an embankment dam on the Satluj River upstream of the Dehar Power House. It is 18 km from Bilaspur off the Chandigarh-Manali Highway (NH-21) near Barmana, Himachal Pradesh, India. The main purpose of the dam is hydroelectric power generation and it will support an 800 MW power station. The dam was constructed by National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC).
The foundation stone for the dam was laid on 5 June 2000 by Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee. On 14 January 2004, main construction on the dam began.Due to problems associated with habitat and forest loss, the project has been delayed. Attempts to impound the reservoir first failed in December 2013 due to problems with sealing the diversion tunnels. By 18 March 2014, a fourth attempt to seal the tunnels and fill the lake was underway.Repairs were made and another unsuccessful impounding was reached in April 2014 as the diversion tunnel continued to leak. Another period of impounding began on 3 November 2014 and finished on 3 January 2015. A tunnel still leaked though but authorities were confident they would have the power station operational by April. Generator commissioning was originally scheduled for 2009 but was rescheduled to 2015.
The dam, located at a gorge near the (now submerged) upstream Bhakra village in Bilaspur district of Himachal Pradesh of height 226 m.The length of the dam (measured from the road above it) is 518.25 m and the width is 9.1 m. Its reservoir known as "Gobind Sagar" stores up to 9.34 billion cubic metres of water. The 90 km long reservoir created by the Bhakra Dam is spread over an area of 168.35 km2. In terms of quantity of water, it is the third largest reservoir in India, the first being Indira Sagar dam in Madhya Pradesh with capacity of 12.22 billion cu m and second Nagarjunasagar Dam.
Described as "New Temple of Resurgent India" by Jawaharlal Nehru,the first prime minister of India, the dam attracts tourists from all over India. Bhakra dam is 15 km from Nangal city and 20 km from Naina Devi town.
Nangal Dam is another dam in Punjab downstream of Bhakra Dam. However, sometimes both the dams together are called Bhakra-Nangal Dam though they are two separate dams.
The Bhakra-Nangal multipurpose dams were among the earliest river valley development schemes undertaken by India after independence though the project had been conceived long before India became a free nation. The agreement for this project had been signed by the then Punjab Revenue Minister, Sir Chhotu Ram in November 1944 with Raja of Bilaspur and finalised the project plan on 8 January 1945. Preliminary works commenced in 1946. Construction of the dam started in 1948; Jawaharlal Nehru poured the first bucket of concrete into the dry riverbed of the Sutlej on 17 November 1955, as a symbolic initiation of the work. Addressing a gathering there, he said, "This is a gift to the people of India and to the future generations from the workers who built this dam", calling for "rais[ing] a memorial" at the dam "in honour" of the workers.The dam was completed by the end of 1963. Successive stages were completed by the early 1970s.
Initially, the construction of the dam was started by Sir Louis Dane, the Lieutenant Governor of Punjab. But the project got delayed and was restarted soon after independence under the chief architect Rai Bahadur Kunwar Sen Gupta. It was financed entirely by the union government. The Control Board for the project included representatives from union government, and of the governments of Punjab, Patiala and East Punjab States Union, Rajasthan, Bilaspur and Himachal Pradesh. The organisation evolved for the purpose of design and construction was divided into three parts. The Designs Directorate provided the designs and drawings. The Construction and Plant Design Directorate was to look after its execution and installing of the plant, while the Directorate of Inspection and Control ensured that the specifications are accorded to safety requirements were met.
In October 1963, at the ceremony to mark the dedication of the Bhakra–Nangal project to the nation, Prime Minister Nehru said, "This dam has been built with the unrelenting toil of man for the benefit of mankind and therefore is worthy of worship. May you call it a Temple or a Gurdwara or a Mosque, it inspires our admiration and reverence". On 22 October 2013, the Government of India approved the release of a commemorative stamp to mark the 50th anniversary of the Bhakra Dam. As how successful India was at that time that it was the only dam in Asia which could produce 1500 MW power.
Also, these are multipurpose projects.
The Reservoirs is on the River Sutlej and is named in honour of Guru Gobind Singh, the tenth Sikh guru. One of the world's highest gravity dams, the Bhakra dam rises nearly 225.5 m above its lowest foundations. Under the supervision of the American dam-builder, Harvey Slocum,work began in the year of 1955 and was completed in 1962. To maintain the level of water, the flow of river Beas was channelized to Gobind Sagar by the Beas-Sutlej link which was accomplished in 1976.
The reservoir lies in the Bilaspur District and Una District. Bilaspur is about 91 km away from the Bhakra Dam.Its name given by Former Chairman of PSEB SardarJi Harbans Singh Somal, in honor of 10th Guru Gobind Singh Ji. In October and November, when the water level of the reservoir is high, a series of regattas are also organised by the Tourism and Civil Aviation department. Water-skiing, sailing, kayaking and water scooter racing are popular water sports activities during this period. Major attractions of the lake include ferry rides and water sports like speedboating.
Gobind Sagar was declared as a water fowl refuge in 1962. Fishing is commonly practiced here. It has about fifty one species and sub species. Labeo dero, Tor picturata, Mystus seenghala and Mirror carp are some of the common species found here.
Govind Sagar Lake Reservoir in Una and Bilaspur Districts of Himachal Pradesh with its 56 km length and nearly 3 km breadth. It offers a variety of watersports activities in close collaboration with the Directorate tourism and Civil Aviation and Directorate of Mountaineering and Allied Sports. Due to fluctuating level of Lake here, the watersports are mainly confined to half of the year i.e. August to January. During this period the activities include swimming, surfing, water-skiing, kayaking, rowing, canoeing, white water river rafting. Courses are conducted at three levels – beginners, intermediate and advance. For this Tourism Department of Himachal Pradesh has constructed a huge Water Sports Complex in Luhnoo Ground, Bilaspur with all the boarding, lodging and equipment facilities.
River rafting or white water rafting, as it is also called, is swiftly making Bilaspur a focus for this scintillating sport. For a torrent of adrenaline to gush through every vein and surge cover every muscle, one can race over the rapids of river – Sutlej, right from Rampur to Bilaspur through serpentine path in deep gorges, placid mountains, green alpine meadows and thick forests, all forming an immense spectrum. Non swimmers and novice can also have this thrilling experience in an inflatable rubber dinghy, on some of the gentler rapids.
Earnest efforts are on to harness the vast potential in water sports to bring Bilaspur (H.P.) on the world map.
This impressive fort is located on the top of a hill known as Bahadurpur, which is at an elevation of 1,980 meters above sea level, near Tepra vilage in Bilaspur. The Bahadurpur fort was constructed by Raja Keshab Sein in 1620 AD during war-ridden times to provide a shield against enemies. The fort is seated on the highest point of Bilaspur district and is surrounded by beautiful deodar and banyan trees. The tourists are fond of this place and visit is especially in the months of winter, when the place is enveloped by lush green valleys and the area receives occasional snow fall.
HighlightsDue to its compatetively greater height, the Bahadurpur area recieves occasional snow fall in winter and the area nearby gets covered by a beautiful deodar and banyan plantation. One can spot a rest-house in the center of hill, perched amidst the picturesque surroundings and stay their comfortably without any hassle. The Bahadurpur fort is in its ruin, but its beauty can still be felt through the strcuture, which reflects the rich Chanderi heritage of Himachal Pradesh.
The archaeologists' state that the fort must have has strong and intimidating high walls and as the name suggests, it has housed many a brave (bahadur) warriors, who fought during the wartime. Unfortunately, the fort has been reduced to mere ruins after having tolerated the extremities of the weather. The Hill, on top of which the Bahadurpur fort is situated, has been named after it.
The tourists love visiting this place for its picturesque settings, craggy terrain, and much comfortable weather.
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