Work on Gomti Barrage upgradation starts to boost drinking water supply in Lucknow

“Over a period of time, biological and chemical corrosion in the barrage gates increased due to the quality of river water and continuous usage, affecting their efficiency. Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath had directed that the gates be replaced in phases. While two gates were replaced in 2024, four more were replaced last year. Work on constructing and installing the remaining four gates is now being carried out in the final phase,” he added.

Chief Engineer (Mechanical) Upendra Singh said, “The gates were built at the ISO-certified irrigation workshop in Bareilly. Each gate has been prepared in two sections, with the upper part weighing 16 tonnes and the lower part 18 tonnes. All 10 gates have a width of 18 metres and a height of 4.95 metres. Built with advanced technology and a strong structure, the new gates will be durable for a long time.”

The department’s biggest challenge, he added, was to ensure that the city’s drinking water supply was not affected during the gate replacement work. Keeping it in mind, a cofferdam has been constructed upstream to maintain water level during repair and replacement work. “This will ensure that adequate water reaches the Kudia Ghat pumping station and the city residents do not face any water shortage,” he said.

“A shutdown has been scheduled from May 8 to June 15 to smoothly complete the repair and gate replacement work. Due to rising temperatures and the possibility of falling water levels, the department is working round the clock to complete the work before time. A special team of engineers and technical staff is continuously monitoring the work,” the Chief Engineer informed.

“Preparations are also being made to operate the barrage in an automated manner through the SCADA (Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition) technology, a critical industrial control system architecture. This will allow the barrage gates to be operated digitally,” he added.

A government spokesperson said that monitoring of water levels, control of gates and quick response in emergency situations will become more effective. “It will also reduce human errors and make the entire system more secure and transparent,” he said.

The barrage has been the mainstay of the water supply system of the state capital. Until the early 2000s, the barrage bridge used to be the only entry point to the Gomti Nagar area.