Sardar Sarovar Dam - A Fascinating Landmark
One of the key tourism places in Gujarat - Sardar Sarovar Dam - has plenty of outdoor activities to offer to those who might be willing to accept this challenge. The massive dam and the hydro-power site, which falls within the Narmada district of the southeastern Gujarat, is located about 200 kms from Ahmedabad, and roughly 80 kms from the nearby city of Vadodara. It might take one 3-4 hours to reach the dam site from Ahmdabad in a four-wheeler, depending on the stoppages made by them in-between.
The dam site is located in the hilly and picturesque regions of the Vindhya and Satpura ranges, which converge along the Gujarat-Madhy Pradesh border. The area does not carry much human settlement, apart from the Kevadia Colony, which houses the manpower for the Sardar Sarovar Nigam.
A Massive Human Effort And A Major Landmark
The project was conceived by the veteran of the Indian Freedom Struggle, Sardar Vallabh Bhai Patel, in the year 1946. The foundation stone was laid down subsequently, in 1961. The main concrete gravity dam, which has a height of 163 ms from the foundation, measures about 1210 ms in total length. The dam's present height from its bottom is about 121 ms (the proposed height: 138 ms), and it can generate about 1450 MW of power.
A canal network of 75000 kms has either been constructed or is now being commissioned to meet with the requirement of water distribution. The main canal measures about 458 kms and reaches upto the Gujarat-Rajasthan border. The total estimated cost of the entire project is described to be at $8b.
Transportation And Accommodation
Vadodara is the closest airport to the Narmada Dam, with daily domestic flights from many other Indian cities. Bharuch is the closest railway station - which falls on the Delhi-Ahmedabad-Mumbai corridor - thus offering a wide range of train journeys.
The travelers can avail accommodation at the following two facilities in the Kevadia colony: (1) A 72-room resort called Narmada Nihar. (2) A 50-room guesthouse cum eatery, called BSEL Rewa Bhawan. Both of these offer 3-4 star services. The visitors can also decide to stay at the nearby Dharamshala, which belongs to the Garudeshwar Temple. The Garudeshwar temple has a biblical era history, and a much respected name among the Hindu devotees.
An alternative can be the Jambughoda Palace - a heritage hotel - on the Pavagadh - Bodeli Road. More options could be found here.
Other Tourism Attractions Around
The region surrounding the Narmada dam site has several tourist attractions. This includes the Narmada Parikrama, Triveni Sangam at the Poicha village near Rajpipla, Nani-Moti Panoti at the Jiorpati village near Rajpipla, the Garudeshwar temple near Kevadia Colony, and the Harsiddhi and Shulpaneshwar temples, both at Nandod in Rajpipla. Check out more here.