India's Hirakud dam is located on the Mahanadi about 9 miles away from Sambalpur in the state of Odisha.
Hirakud reservoir, the lake created by the dam, stretches for 55 kilometres (34 miles).
After India gained its independence, this project was one of the first large river valley projects to be initiated.
The initial report for the Hirakud dam project was submitted to the government in June 1947. On April 12, 1948, Jawaharlal Nehru poured the first concrete.
In contrast to the lower delta region, where floods can damage crops, the upper drainage basin of the Mahanadi River, which is concentrated on the Chhattisgarh plain, experiences periodic drought.
In order to mitigate these issues, DAMS were built to create a reservoir and regulate river flow in the drainage system.
The dam directs the flow of the Mahanadi River, which powers numerous hydroelectric generators.