The Rani Jamara Kulariya Irrigation Project (RJKIP) envisages irrigating about 38,300 ha of land in Kailali District in the Far Western Development Region. The RJKIP envisages irrigating about 38,300 ha CCA of land (14,300 ha under RJK schemes, 6,000 ha in the north of RJK and east of Pathariya river and 18,000 ha in the west of Pathariya river). The command area, thus, will extend from the Karnali River in the East to the Kangada River in the West and forest boundary in the North to Nepal-India Border in the South.
RJKIP plans to abstract water from the Karnali River near the village of Chisapani, which is where the Karnali River emerges out of the hills and enters into the alluvial plain. The intake is located just downstream of the East-West Highway bridge across the river. Around 500 m downstream of the bridge, the Karnali bifurcates into two channels, the Geruwa on the left and the Kaudiyala on the right. In 1983, a major flood caused the Geruwa to become the major channel, receiving all the flows during the low flow period and most of the flood flows. This change made it very difficult for the farmers in the Rani, Jamara and Kulariya systems to divert irrigation flows from the Karnali into their canal systems. Each year the farmers have been excavating a 3 km channel to guide the flow towards the west bank. In addition, during floods, uncontrolled flows carrying excess water and sediment have been entering the canal systems due to the lack of control structures. The systems are thus becoming unreliable and ineffective in providing appropriate irrigation supplies.
The Government of Nepal intends to supply reliable irrigation water to the three existing farmers’ managed irrigation systems and to additional area in the north and west of the existing irrigated area (24,300 ha). Accordingly, the Department of Irrigation (DOI) established a unit office in FY 2008-09 in the Far Western Regional Irrigation Directorate, Dhangadi, to conduct studies for the detailed design and initial environmental examination of this Project. The RJKIP was established in FY 2010-11 under the DOI at Tikapur, Kailali, to expedite the work of providing assured supply of irrigation water and rehabilitation of the existing systems.
The Project envisages the construction of a permanent side intake at Chisapani, a settling basin at about 4+950 m, a main canal up to 8+875 km (bifurcation point of New Branch Canal), a New Branch Canal of 14.4 km length and a feeder canal of 11.09 km to feed the three existing Rani, Jamara and Kulariya systems. The new intake at Chisapani will have a capacity of 100 m3/s to supply the three existing systems plus the new area. A settling basin with hydraulic flushing arrangements has been proposed to remove sediment from the main canal and flush it back into the Karnali River. The main canal up to the settling basin has been designed for 100 m3/s capacity, including a flushing discharge of 20 m3/s. The capacity of the main canal from the settling basin to the bifurcation point with the NBC is thus 80 m3/s. The existing traditional farmers’ systems will also be modernized and rehabilitated with the provision of various structures such as head and cross regulators, secondary and tertiary outlets, cross-drainage structures, road bridges and culverts and farm roads.
CMS has long involvement in this project right from the detailed engineering design. The assignments successfully accomplished as well as on-going in RJKIP are:
- Engineering survey, geo-technical investigation, detailed design and drawings, and preparation of quantity and cost estimates (headworks-100 m3/s, main/feeder canal-80 m3/s, associated structures, and river training works) – completed.
- Hydraulic Modeling and Detailed Design of Kulariya (4,500 ha) and Jamara (5,380 ha) Canal Systems – completed.
- Construction supervision, contract management and quality control of intake (Headworks) structure having diversion capacity of 100 m3/s and river training works of the Project with 38,300 ha command area – completed.
- Construction Supervision & Contract Management of FC/BC Rehabilitation and Upgrading of Roads, Bridges and Culverts of RJKIP – completed.
- Construction Supervision, Quality Control & Contract Management of Civil Works in Main Canal of Rani Jamara Kulariya Irrigation Project – on going.
- Preparation of Detailed Project Report of Extension of Command Area of RJKIP (Lamki area – 6,000 ha) – on going.
Preparation of Detailed Project Report of Command Area Development Study of RJKIS – Phase II – on going.