The Mai Khola is a river in eastern Nepal, the headwater of the
Kankai River
The Kankai River ( ne, कन्काई नदी, also referred to as Kankai Mai or Mai Khola) is a trans-boundary river flowing through the hills of Ilam and the plains of the Jhapa District in Nepal. A holy river for many Hindus liv ...
. Its water is used for irrigation and also powers several hydroelectric plants.
Location
The Mai Khola is the main tributary of the Kankai River.
It is a perennial river that originates in springs in the
Mahabharat Range
The Lower Himalayan Range ( ne, पर्वत शृङ्खला parbat shrinkhalā) – also called the Middle Himalayas or Lesser Himalayas or Himachal – is a major east–west mountain range with elevations 3,700 to 4,500 m (12,000 to ...
about above sea level.
It flows from north to south.
Major tributaries include the
Jog Mai Khola and
Puwa Khola.
At its confluence with the Deb Mai Khola, it takes the name of Kankai Mai River, and when it enters the
Jhapa District
Jhapa ( ne, झापा जिल्ला; ) is a district of Province No. 1 in eastern Nepal named after a Rajbanshi word "Jhapa" meaning "to cover" (verb). The latest official data, the 2021 Nepal Census, puts the total population of the d ...
it becomes the
Kankai River
The Kankai River ( ne, कन्काई नदी, also referred to as Kankai Mai or Mai Khola) is a trans-boundary river flowing through the hills of Ilam and the plains of the Jhapa District in Nepal. A holy river for many Hindus liv ...
.
The catchment area of the Mai Khola upstream from the Kankai Mai River at Chepte is , and lies entirely within the
Ilam District
Ilam district ( ne, इलाम जिल्ला) is one of 14 districts of Province No. 1 of eastern Nepal. It is a Hill district and covers . The 2011 census counted 290,254 population. The municipality of Ilam is the district headquar ...
.
Mai AWP
The Mai Area Water Partnership (AWP) was established after a June 2002 workshop.
It is a network of local water-related institutions with the Namsaling Community Development Centre (NCDC), a
non-governmental organization
A non-governmental organization (NGO) or non-governmental organisation (see spelling differences) is an organization that generally is formed independent from government. They are typically nonprofit entities, and many of them are active in h ...
, as the host institution.
The purpose was to ensure sustainable irrigation development in the Mai River basin, the only basin in Ilam.
For the purpose of a pilot project study the Mai River basin was divided into 14 sub-basins, or blocks.
The study found that two of these blocks were water-stressed and another two had only just enough water flows for present demand.
One of the challenges of the AWP was to encourage the members to work together as a network, rather than use it as a forum to air grievances.
However, it was hoped that the AWP would provide a model for similar partnerships in other parts of Nepal.
Hydroelectricity
seven hydropower projects on the Mai Khola were operational and another three were under development.
If the 6.2 MW
Puwa Khola Hydropower Station
Puwa Khola Hydropower Station (Nepali: पुवा खोला जलविद्युत आयोजना) is a run-of-river hydro-electric plant located in Ilam District of Nepal. The flow from Puwa River, a tributary of Mai Khola, is us ...
is included, the active and under construction plants total 86.97 MW output.
The projects were:
The intake to the 6.2 MW
Puwa Khola Hydropower Station
Puwa Khola Hydropower Station (Nepali: पुवा खोला जलविद्युत आयोजना) is a run-of-river hydro-electric plant located in Ilam District of Nepal. The flow from Puwa River, a tributary of Mai Khola, is us ...
is on the
Puwa River about above the Geya Danda Irrigation System.
About of water is diverted to the power station.
The diverted water flows along a headrace tunnel and then a penstock pipe to the power station, which discharges it into the left bank of the Mai Khola.
This leaves very little irrigation water in the dry season.
Notes
Sources
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Rivers of Koshi Province