Jal Shakti Minister CR Patil Launches Dam Safety Tech Platforms And NDSA Website

Union Jal Shakti Minister C. R. Patil on Tuesday inaugurated the new office of the National Dam Safety Authority at West Block II in RK Puram. Senior officials of the ministry attended the event.

Those present included Jal Shakti Minister Raj Bhushan Chaudhary, Secretary of the Department of Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation V. L. Kantha Rao, Chairman of the Central Water Commission Anupam Prasad, and NDSA Chairman Anil Jain, along with other senior officials.

Union Jal Shakti Minister visits the campus

C.R. Patil inaugurated the new NDSA office by cutting the ribbon and unveiling a plaque. He later toured the office premises. C.R. Patil, Raj Bhushan Chaudhary and V. L. Kantha Rao also planted trees on the NDSA lawns.

During the event, several digital initiatives developed by the National Dam Safety Authority were launched to strengthen dam safety governance and promote data driven decision making.

Launch of NDSA website

C.R. Patil launched the NDSA website developed as per DBIM 3.0 guidelines. The main feature of the website is the GIS based "Specified Dams" section, which provides a map based interface displaying key information and features of designated dams across India.

A short introductory video highlighting the main sections of the website and its functionality was also presented.

Launch of NETRA platform

The Union Minister also launched NETRA, an AI enabled platform developed by NDSA in collaboration with Weapons and Electronics Systems Engineering Establishment, a research laboratory of the Indian Navy.

NETRA provides an interactive interface that allows quick access to information from key NDSA documents, including the Dam Safety Act regulations and policy guidelines. The platform is integrated with DHARMA, a national repository of dam safety data covering more than 6,600 designated dams and thousands of inspection reports.

National Dam Safety Mirror launched

Union Minister C.R. Patil also launched the National Dam Safety Mirror, a visualization platform developed by the Centre for Development of Advanced Computing to present the results of dam break analysis.

The platform helps authorities visualise potential dam break scenarios and supports improved risk assessment and planning.

Remote launch of CWC solar facility

As part of the programme, the Union Minister remotely inaugurated rooftop solar power plants installed on seven buildings of the Central Water Commission. Each facility has an installed capacity of less than 25 kW.

In his address, C.R. Patil commended the efforts of the National Dam Safety Authority in strengthening dam safety governance through technology driven initiatives.

He also highlighted the role of NETRA in analysing dam inspection data. According to him, more than 13,000 inspection reports are generated annually during pre monsoon and post monsoon inspections of dams. He said linking the DHARMA database with artificial intelligence will help analyse this large volume of information and support improved decision making.