Railway
India's first river valley dam after independence, built by the Damodar Valley Corporation, was the:
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Answer: Option B — Tilaiya Dam
Detailed Solution
The Tilaiya Dam was the first dam built by the Damodar Valley Corporation (DVC) and is generally described as the first river valley dam built in India after independence. It was completed in 1953 across the Barakar river, the main tributary of the Damodar, in Koderma district of Jharkhand (then in Bihar). It is used for flood control, irrigation and hydroelectric power.
About the Damodar Valley Corporation (DVC):
It was set up on 7 July 1948 by an Act of the Constituent Assembly (the DVC Act, 1948). It was the first multipurpose river valley project of independent India.
It was modelled on the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) of the USA.
Its main aim was to control the devastating floods of the Damodar river, which was called the "Sorrow of Bengal" because of the damage its floods caused in the plains of Bengal.
It also aimed to provide irrigation, generate electricity (hydro and thermal), and support industries in the region.
The DVC built four major dams:
- Tilaiya (1953) on the Barakar.
- Konar (1955) on the Konar river, a tributary of the Damodar.
- Maithon (1957) on the Barakar.
- Panchet (1959) on the Damodar.
- It also built the Durgapur Barrage (1955) for irrigation.
- The Damodar valley, which lies in Jharkhand and West Bengal, is rich in coal (Jharia and Raniganj coalfields) and is called the "Ruhr of India" because of its industries.
Other early river valley projects:
Bhakra-Nangal (Sutlej, Punjab and Himachal Pradesh): Nehru called such dams "the temples of modern India". The Bhakra Dam was completed in 1963.
Hirakud Dam (Mahanadi, Odisha): completed in 1957, it is one of the longest earthen dams in the world.
Why not the other options?
- ✗Bhakra Dam on the Sutlej was completed in 1963.
- ✗Hirakud Dam on the Mahanadi was completed in 1957.
- ✗Maithon Dam is another DVC dam on the Barakar, completed in 1957.
Quick tip
Remember: First DVC dam = Tilaiya (1953, Barakar river, Jharkhand); DVC = 7 July 1948, modelled on the TVA (USA); Damodar = "Sorrow of Bengal"; Hirakud = Mahanadi.
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This question tests your understanding of Firsts in India & World, a key topic in the General Knowledge section. The detailed solution above uses a step-by-step approach to show the reasoning, and where available, a shortcut that helps you solve similar questions in under 90 seconds during the actual exam.
This topic covers the first persons and events in India and the world: the first Indian to win a Nobel Prize, the first woman to hold major offices, the first to climb Everest or reach space, and India's first institutions, newspapers, railways and satellites. It also covers the largest, longest, highest and smallest records in India and the world. These are pure memory questions, so revise them as short lists by theme: first women, first in sports, first in science and space, and first in governance. Be careful with the exact wording, such as 'first Indian' versus 'first person of Indian origin', or 'first woman President' versus 'first woman Prime Minister', since options are often designed to exploit this. Practise the firsts in India and the world questions below, written in the style of the general awareness sections of exams such as SSC, banking, railways, CUET GAT, MAH CET and CLAT. Each question comes with a detailed explanation that adds related facts, so every question helps you revise more than one point.