Farakka Barrage |ForumIAS

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News- Farakka Barrage began operations in 1975, marking its 50th anniversary in 2025.

About Farakka Barrage

Location: Built on the Ganga River in Murshidabad district, West Bengal, about 18 km from the Bangladesh border.
Commissioning: The project construction commenced in 1961 and it became operational on April 21, 1975.
Purpose: It diverts 40,000 cusecs of water into the Farakka Feeder Canal to remove silt from the Bhagirathi-Hooghly River, ensuring the navigability of Kolkata Port.
Water sharing agreements: India and Bangladesh have signed multiple agreements over Ganga water sharing, including the 1977 Farakka Agreement and the 1996 Ganga Water Treaty.

Key facts about Hooghly River

About– The Hooghly River, also called the Bhagirathi-Hoogly and Kati-Ganga River, is a major river in West Bengal.
Length & Formation- A 260 km-long distributary of the Ganges, formed when the river splits in Murshidabad—one branch becomes the Padma (flowing into Bangladesh), while the other forms the Hooghly.
Rivers drain into Hooghly– Ajay, Falgu, Jalangi and Churni to the north and Rupnarayan, Mayurakshi, Damodar and Haldi to the south.
Important cities along its course– Jiaganj, Azimganj, Murshidabad, and Baharampur