Farakka Barrage

Completed in 1974-75 , the Farakkah Barrage is a dam on the Ganges River located in the Indian state of West Bengal, roughly 10 kilometers (km) from the border with Bangladesh. The dam was built to divert the Ganges River water into the Hoogly River during the dry season, from January to June, in order to flush out the accumulating silt which in the 1950s and 1960s was a problem at the major port of Kolkata on the Hooghly River. [cite book |title=Bangladesh : a country study |publisher=Federal Research Division |date=1989 |location=Washington, D.C. |pages=306 |url=http://lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/bdtoc.html |access date=2007-01-10]
Bangladesh and India have had many debates about how the Farakka Barrage cuts off Bangladesh's water supply. Also in Bangladesh, the diversion has raised salinity levels, contaminated fisheries, hindered navigation, and posed a threat to water quality and public health. [ Wolf, Aaron T. “Water and Human Security.” Journal of Contemporary Water Research and Education. 118. (2001): 29.] Lower levels of soil moisture along with increased salinity have also led to desertification. ["Indo-Bangladesh Common Rivers: The Impact on Bangladesh." Contemporary South Asia. 1. 2. (1992):5.]

This is the Longest Barrage in the world and has recently been entered into the Guinness Book of World Records. This barrage is constructed by the Hindustan Constructions Limited Company

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