The study deals with dam break analysis of Barna dam located in the state of Madhya Pradesh carried out using the popular National Weather Service Dam Break Flood Forecasting (NWS DAMBRK) model to assess the likely maximum flood discharge and elevation to be attained in Bareli township, 22 km downstream of the dam.

Besides computing the dam break flood hydrograph, a sensitivity analysis of various DAMBRK inputs is carried out and their effect on maximum discharge and elevation profiles is evaluated. The dam break analysis forms an integral part of the overall dam safety program of a country, and India too is not an exception to it. The hazards created by floods resulting from a sudden, rapid and uncontrolled release of water through a breach that forms in a dam need to be assessed to provide adequate safety measures in the event of such a catastrophic failure.

The level of detail of hydrologic and hydraulic analyses needed to evaluate the consequences of a dam-breached flood depends on the danger to human life and the amount of property damage that would occur. If human fatalities are unlikely and if property damage potential is small, a simple procedure might provide an adequate description of the extent and timing of downstream flooding resulting from a dam failure.  

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