Bansagar Dam

Bansagar Dam is a multipurpose masonry dam built across the Sone River at Deolond in Shahdol district, Madhya Pradesh, near the Madhya Pradesh-Chhattisgarh border. Completed in 2006 after construction began in 1978, it is a joint project of Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Bihar. The dam creates a large reservoir providing irrigation, hydroelectric power generation and flood control, and is notable for its scale, engineering and scenic reservoir landscape.

Visitors can expect a large masonry dam structure across the Sone River with a vast reservoir extending upstream. The site offers panoramic views of the water body, spillway gates, and surrounding low hills and forested banks. Visitors can walk along approach roads and designated viewpoints to observe the reservoir, take photographs, and view the power house area from a distance. The environment is open and scenic, with calm water and rural surroundings.

Bansagar Dam is named after the 7th-century Sanskrit scholar Bana Bhatta. The project was conceived under the 1973 agreement between Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Bihar for sharing Sone River waters. Foundation stone was laid in 1978 by Prime Minister Morarji Desai, construction continued through the 1980s-1990s, and the dam was completed in 2006. It was designed as a multipurpose project for irrigation, 425 MW hydroelectric power generation and flood control.