People near Ratnagiri dam had warned of cracks, Maharashtra minister admits

MUMBAI: People living near Maharashtra's Tiware dam which breached on Tuesday night had earlier complained about cracks on the wall, state water resources minister Girish Mahajan has admitted.

“This is an unfortunate incident; this small dam came under the Dapholi irrigation department. The villagers had complained about the dam leaking. Irrigation officials had claimed that they had completed the repair work. We have ordered an inquiry in to the incident.” Mahajan told the media on Wednesday.

The Tiware dam in Ratnagiri district developed a breach late last night after heavy rains, causing a a flood-like situation in seven downstream villages. As many as 13 houses were washed away. Ten bodies were recovered by noon, with more than a dozen still missing.


Several people in locality claimed they had written to the administration about the cracks in the walls of the dam, and that no action was taken.

Some also blamed Khemraj Constructions, a firm owned by Chiplun Shiv Sena MLA Sadanand Chavan which built the dam. Chavan said his brother had built the dam, but that the responsibility for its maintenance was with the irrigation department.

A total of 36 people have been killed across Maharashtra in three days of rain-related incidents, many of them in wall collapses in Mumbai, Kalyan and Pune.