Nashik’s Left Bank Canal will be covered along a 13.2-km stretch under a project designed to stop garbage dumping, protect water flow and create 7.5-metre-wide roads on both sides, with the Water Resources Department (WRD) now inviting tenders for the work.
The canal runs from Chandshi Shivar through Nashik city to beyond Ozar-Nandur Naka and carries drinking water to 18 downstream villages as well as irrigation water for farmers. The stretch passes through densely inhabited areas, with settlements located on both banks.
According to WRD officials, the canal has increasingly been used as an unofficial dumping ground for broken furniture, plastic waste and animal carcasses. The waste obstructs water flow, particularly below roads crossing the canal, and has led to repeated maintenance requirements and water losses.
“The canal has become a dumping yard. Waste and carcasses not only choke water flow but also attract rodents that damage the canal structure, resulting in leakages and water seepage,” a senior WRD official from the Nashik division said.
Under the proposed project, the canal will be enclosed with precast reinforced cement concrete box structures. The covering is intended to prevent garbage and other foreign objects from entering the water channel while protecting the infrastructure from damage caused by dumping and animal activity.
The project will occupy a 20.6-metre-wide corridor. Roads measuring 7.5 metres in width are planned on both sides of the covered canal, along with roadside amenities and plantation drives wherever feasible. Officials said the work would not require land acquisition.
The road component is expected to formalise movement along a corridor that currently passes through built-up areas, while the canal covering will alter how the water infrastructure is accessed and maintained. Measures are also proposed to prevent encroachments and loitering over the covered section.
The proposal was first submitted in December 2024 and has received approval from the Nashik-Trimbakeshwar Kumbh Mela Authority, allowing the tender process to move forward. The tender floated by the WRD is the next stated step before implementation.
The project addresses a problem that extends beyond the appearance of the canal. Waste entering or accumulating in the channel has affected the reliability of a system that serves both drinking-water and agricultural users. By enclosing the canal, the department aims to protect the water corridor while adding road capacity through parts of Nashik where habitation has grown along both banks.
The WRD’s next milestone will be the completion of the tendering process and the subsequent execution of the canal-covering and road works. The supplied report does not specify the estimated project cost, contractor selection date or construction completion timeline.
