PM Modi visits Dutch water management project Afsluitdijk as India, Netherlands sign Kalpasar pact

📌 Summary:

• PM Modi visited the iconic Dutch water management project Afsluitdijk — a 32-km dam-and-causeway globally benchmarked for flood control and land reclamation
• Visit accompanied by Dutch PM Rob Jetten
• Letter of Intent (LoI) signed between India's Ministry of Jal Shakti and Netherlands' Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management for technical cooperation
• Cooperation focus: India's Kalpasar project in Gujarat — proposed freshwater reservoir across the Gulf of Khambhat, integrating tidal power generation, irrigation and transportation infrastructure
• MEA underlined commitment to innovative water management, climate resilience and sustainable infrastructure
• Modi: India wants modern technology for irrigation, flood control, expanding inland waterways
• Jetten: deepening cooperation in water sector under India-Netherlands Strategic Partnership on Water
• Netherlands also returned Chola-era copper plates to India during the visit

🎯 UPSC Relevance: GS2 — Bilateral relations (India-Netherlands); GS1/GS3 — Geography (Gulf of Khambhat) and infrastructure (water resource management, inland waterways, tidal power)

📝 Prelims Facts:

• Afsluitdijk — 32-km Dutch dam; separates Wadden Sea (saltwater) from IJsselmeer (freshwater lake)
• Kalpasar Project — proposed dam across the Gulf of Khambhat, Gujarat; envisages freshwater reservoir, tidal power, road link
• Indian ministry involved: Jal Shakti
• Dutch counterpart ministry: Infrastructure and Water Management
• India-Netherlands have a "Strategic Partnership on Water"
• Returned artefacts: Chola-era copper plates

🔑 Key Term: Kalpasar Project — Gujarat government's mega scheme to create the world's largest freshwater reservoir by damming the Gulf of Khambhat (Cambay); aims to combine freshwater storage, tidal power generation and a Bhavnagar-Bharuch road corridor.