Damodar Valley Corporation

DVC emerged as a culmination of attempts made over a whole century to control the wild and erratic Damodar River. The valley has been ravaged frequently by floods at varying intensities. Serious floods occurred in 1730, 1823, 1848, 1856, 1882, 1898, 1901, 1916, 1923, 1935 & 1943. The river spans over an area of 25,235 sq. km covering the states of Bihar (now Jharkhand) & West Bengal. The catastrophe caused by the 1943 flood, led to serious public indignation against the Government. As a result, the Government of Bengal appointed a board of Enquiry titled "Damodar Flood Enquiry Committee"with the Maharaja of Burdwan and the noted physicist Dr. Meghnad Saha as members for suggesting remedial measures.

The Damodar Flood Enquiry Committee suggested creation of an authority similar to the Tennessee Valley Authority in the USA, and recommended the construction of dams and storage reservoirs at the sites with a total capacity of 1.5 millions acre ft. (1.850 millions cu. M) and highlighted the possibilities of multipurpose development in the valley area. The Govt. of India then commissioned the ‘Central Technical Power Board’ to study the proposal and appointed Mr. W L Voorduin, a senior engineer of the TVA ...