Table Of ContentPRB-TP/153R
Technical Paper No. 153.
Original Issue 1903.
Reprinted 1931
RIVER TRAINING AND CONTROL
ON THE GUIDE BANK SYSTEM
BY
Mr. Francis J. E. Spring, CLE.
CALCUTTA
PRINTED FOR THE RAILWAY BOARD
AT THE EAST INDIAN RAILWAY PRESS
1935.
Copies obtainable from —
THE MANAGER OF PUBLICATIONS,
DELHI.
Price Rs. 3-4-0 or 5s. 6d
Forwarded with the compliments of the Secretary to the Railway Board of
India.
Simla, 1
1st July 1935. J
All rights reserved»
River Training and Control
Being a description of the theory and practice of
the modern system
entitled
m
The Guide Bank System,
Used in India for the Control and Guidance
of
Great Alluvial Rivers
by
Francis J. E. Spring, C. I. E.
L.C.E.. AND MAI. HONORIS CAUSA, TRIN. COL, DUBLIN;
M. INST., CE.; M. INST. MECH. E.; MEM. AM. SOC. C.E.,
CHIEF ENGINEER IN THE INDIAN PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT.
CALCUTTA
PRINTED FOR THE RAILWAY BOARD
AT THE EAST INDIAN RAILWAY PRESS
1935.
Copies obtainable from —
THE MANAGER OF PUBLICATIONS,
DELHI.
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This Technical Paper, which issues from the Office of the Railway
Board, India, is not an official publication; neither the Government of
India nor the Railway Board are responsible for statements made OF
opinions expressed in the paper.
H. L. WOODHOUSE,
Director, Civil Engineering,
Railway Board.
SIMLA: 1
\
1st July 19S5. J
AUTHOR'S PREFACE.
For some years past., it 'has been my ambition to attempt a clear elucida
tion of the subject of the following thesis. For in the course of much
inspection of railways and bridges throughout India, I have found that, in
the absence of some definite basis for the study of this particular phase of
river engineering, the practice of it was growing up somewhat at haphazard;
and it seemed that, unless what had been done up to date and the experience
that had accumulated were definitely set forth for easy reference, there was
a risk of either extravagance of first capital outlay on construction on the
one hand, or, as the alternative, heavy recurring expenditure on annual
maintenance, out of funds which otherwise might be applied in payment of
dividends. But the opportunity of writing such a thesis did not present
itself until the arrival of the final year of my 33 years' service with the
Government of India, as an Engineer in the Public Works Department,
when finding myself told off to report on the practicability of, and to produce
a design if practicable for, a bridge over the Lower Ganges vide
Chapters XXIII and XXV and also finding myself in touch with evidence
of the experience of many years, buried in thte Government record racks I
obtained permission to unravel the records in question, and was given a
recommendatory letter to all the Indian professional authorities likely to be
able to assist me in the search for information. The result is the following
chapters. And I avail myself of this opportunity to acknowledge the
courtesy and kindness of the many engineers who have helped in the collec
tion of information, and who have placed at my disposal the results of their
experiences.
2. The scheme of the book is as follows. After a brief introductory
chapter, which attempts to give an idea of the importance of the subject
and to justify my venturing to pose as an authority in regard to it, a com
parison is made between the Mississippi and Indian rivers of the class chiefly
dealt with. The reason why the Mississippi has been selected for comparison
is, that whilst in Indian and English professional literature there is a great
dearth of reference to the engineering of big alluvial rivers, the Mississippi
and its spills and their treatment have given rise to an immense quantity of
literature, much of it written by men of the highest professional standing and
ability. In Appendix X, I have given a list of so much of this literature
as appears in the Transactions of the American Society of Civil Engineers.
In Chapters 111, IV and V, T deal with river action, beginning first with a
resume of Mr. R. A. Molloy's theory of the action of the Indus and rivers
like it, as based on his experience of great continuous reaches of them, and
passing on next to river phenomena as they appear to the necessarily limited
view of the engineer whose duty it is to build and maintain fixed structures
to which such phenomena are a source of danger.
3. The next Chapter, VI, is an important one. In it I show how extra
ordinarily different are the sands of different rivers in their susceptibility to
water transportation, and how work of a class intended to protect the
erodible beds and banks of rivers may be designed with due relation to the
fineness or coarseness of the sand concerned. Chapters VII to X inclusive
explain the principles, as I understand them, underlying the due design of
the class of works which give this book its title. These works are the guide
banks in India familiarly known as 'Bell bunds,' after their inventor
Mr. J. R. Bell, M.INST.C.E. which are used now-a-days, practically to
the exclusion of all other systems, for securely holding a vagrant alluvial
river between the abutments of bridges and weirs built across them. The
proper design of these structures, which may run to anything between 5 and
50 lakhs of rupees — say £30,000 to £3,00,000 or" from $1,50,000 to
§15 00,000 — worth, for the guide banks of a single bridge, has a most
important bearing not only on their cost, whether for first construction or
for after maintenance, but also on the amount of trouble involved in their
11
future inspection and repair. V The result of the considerations set forth in
Chapters VII to X is the offer to the profession, for provisional acceptance
pending accumulation of further experience, of a type design for guide
banks, for use in the class of rivers dealt with. Plate XX gives the author's
type cross section for the stone armour of such works. Tlhe object of the
design is that such works may be so constructed, once and for all, that the
annually recurring cost of their up-keep, and the trouble of their up-keep,
may be reduced to a minimum. Chapter XII deals with a subject but little
understood, namely, the effect on other interests, riparian towns, etc., of
tihe narrowing of soft bedded rivers, by means of guide banks at the abut
ments of bridges or weirs.
4. The next ten Chapters, XIII to XXII, are devoted to a history,
extracted with much labour from masses of official records, the accumulation
of years, of tlhe training works of certain selected bridges and weirs. In
these chapters I have endeavoured to show how the idea of the modern guide
bank gradually grew out of a number of experiences, until at last it was
formulated definitely and given practical effect to. Then I offer evidence
which, as I read it, shows up the defects of the earlier guide banks, and
gives tihe clue for their improvement, and for the design of new ones, on the
lines laid down in Chapters VI to X. Chapters XXIII and XXV show how
I have designed the guide banks and depth of foundations for the projected
Lower Ganges bridge, which, if undertaken, will be quite the most formid
able work of its class that up to date will have been attempted. Eecognising
that cost, unit rates and relative cost are very important matters affecting
the design of bridges and training works, I have devoted Chapter XXIV
to the extraction of such evidence on the subject as seems likely to be useful
to bridge designers. For if, as somebody has suggested, " Engineering is
the art of securing the highest interest on a dollar/' the cost consideration
can by no means be left out of account. Chapter XXVI sums up the general
line of argument and Chapter XXVII makes some suggestions. Finally the
Appendices contain some useful information, especially a list of some of
the literature, on the subject not merely of alluvial rivers, but also on that of
river and harbour improvement in general, which the busy man may find
useful for reference. Indeed I assume that any one finding it necessary to
deal with the expenditure of money on a large scale, with a view to dividends
whether for the State or for private shareholders, will desire to read up as
much as possible of the records of other men's experiences in the particular
branch of practice with which he is concerned.
5. The following very picturesque description of a great Indian river,
the Narbada, taken from Mr. T. W. Webber's book, 6 The Forests of Upper
India and their Inhabitants/' will be of interest as affording a fair idea of
the magnitude of the erosive forces with which Indian River Engineers have
got to contend:—
It is at the height of the monsoon that the grandeur of this mighty flood is properly
seen. Then the banks, which are 60 feet high, are full to within a. few feet of the top,
with a great rushing sea of turbid water. Viewed from the summit of what were in
summer high cliffs, the river runs onward just beneath one's feet; and the whole
landscape seems to be gliding westward, only the distant glue hills of Bhopal appear
ing against the sky above the moving sea. Far out in the centre of the current a great
line of floating objects goes along. Great trees torn up by the roots sail steadily, their
heads and branches, limbs and roots rolling alternately above the raging torrent.
Houses and logs of timber, the bodies of cattle and sambur deer, and even human
remains, float away in constant procession carried by the relentless force of the waters
on their voyage of many hundred miles to the ocean. What a stupendous force which
is gradually levelling down the land and sinking it in the sea! The mass of water, a
mile wide and 50 feet deep, moving along for days and months together, fills the mind
with wonder and awe. * The sky is lurid with heavy rain-charged clouds, at times dis
charging torrents of drenching warm rain. At times the thunder rolls, and flash after
flash of vivid lightning rends the sky, and the surface of the torrent is whitened and
lashed by the howling hot tempest.
6. The bridges whose safety it is the aim of this thesis to secure, form
essential links in a network of some 26,000 miles of State-owned railways,
which, at an average rate of £9,133 per mile, have cost £23,60,00,000. In
Ill
the year 1902 they earned £1,34,80,000 net. or the equivalent of a 4-92 per
cent, dividend. During the last 25 years, their dividends have averaged
just 5£ per cent, per annum — a fine record for so large an outlay.
7. The canals, the safety of whose headworks forms the subject of
Chapter XXII, with due reference to the suggestions contained in Chapters
VII to X, are part of a State-owned system of Irrigation which, though it
has cost only one-ninth part of what the railways have cost, viz., £2,56,50,000
yet returns even a large proportional revenue, viz., 6-38 per cent. The
State-owned and controlled canals of India irrigate 12,000,000 acres, on
which is raised a crop valued at £2,40,00,000 or just £2 per acre, out of
which the State collects £0073 and tJhe farmer keeps £1840. It will be
seen that the value of one year's crop, grown by the help of the State canals
— if only it could be claimed by the State for such a purpose would prac
tically suffice, or very nearly, to cover the cost of the construction of the
entire canal system of India.
8. I desire to reiterate here what I have said in paragraph 6 of
Chapter I, viz., that when desrcibing the gradual growth of the engineering
methods which it is the chief object of this book to explain I have frequently
been obliged to show how that growth was delayed and hindered by some
of the senior engineers of the Indian Public Works Department of between
15 and 30 years ago. I wish, however, at this early stage, to make it clear
that I have had no thought or intention of applying adverse criticism to the
attitude assumed by these gentlemen; feeling, as I do, that if asked to
sanction any very radical departure from existing practice in such matters,
I would probably act with no less caution than was exhibited in my own
younger days by such men as Sir Guilford Molesworth, Mr. R. T. Mallet,
and others to whom it fell to put the curb on us younger engineers who,
since those days, have evolved the modern Indian system of river training
now to be described.
SIMLA:
1st December 190S.
F. d E. SPRING.
INDEX TO THE CHAPTERS.
No. CONTENTS OF THE CHAPTERS. PACE,
I Introductory ... ... .., ... ... I
II Comparison of Indian Rivers with the Mississippi ... ... 4
III A theory of cut-offs and avulsions ... ... ... 7
TV The physics of alluvial rivers in general ... ... ... 11
V The deep scour which endangers permanent structures ... 24
VI The classification of river sands ... ... ... 28
VII The artificial narrowing of rivers, by means of guide banks ... 35
VIII The length and shape of guide banks ... ... ... 41
IX The guida bank section and that of its armour ... ... 47
X Construction and maintenance of guide banks ... ... 56
XI Depth of bridge piers as affected by river training ... ... 60
XII The effect of narrowing a river on other interests ... ... 63
XIII Spur training on the Chenab river at Wazirabad ... ... 67
XIV The training of the Sutlej at Adamwahan ... ... 74
XV Denehy's groynes at the Lower Ganges canal head works ... 84
XVI Training works for the Ferozpur Sutlej bridge ... ... 87
XVII The training of the Chenab river at Shev Shah ... ... 90
XVIII The Gogra and Kosi training works ... ... ... 101
XIX The training of the Ganges at Garhmuktesar ... ... 106
XX The training of four Brahmaputra affluents, and of some minor
rivers ... ... ... ••• ... 110
XXI The training of the Indus at Dera Ghazi Khan ... ... 117
XXII Training works at Khanki and llasul canal head works ... ... 138
XXIII The author's proposed training works for the Lower Ganges bridge 143
XXIV The cost of bridging and training ... ... 145
XXV The gauging of a great river in flood time ... ... 151
XXVI Summary of advice as to guide bank design . . ... 155
XXVII Suggestion for an Indian Rivers Commission ... ... 161
V
CONTENTS.
CHAPTER I.—INTRODUCTORY.
The application of the theories and practice dealt with in this paper is limited to
certain classes of rivers The author justifies his coming forward as an
authority on the subject of river engineering How this paper comes to
be written The importance of the subject, as gauged by the mileage of
the rivers affected, and by the magnitude of the expenditure involved
The arrangement adopted in this book No adverse criticism intended of
the engineers who delayed the introduction of the modern system of river
training.
CHAPTER IT.—COMPARISON OF INDIAN RIVERS WITH MISSISSIPPI.
Indian rivers compared with the Mississippi Mr. W. Starling's description
of the Mississippi The Mississippi problem differs from that dealt with
in this paper.
CHAPTER III.—A THEORY OF CUT-OFFS AND AVULSIONS.
Mr. Molloy's theory and notation of river physics Mr. Molloy's type of an
alluvial river and its action Irregularities of actual as compared with
mean river slope Causes of irregularity of low water gradient Causes
of irregularity of high water gradient Tendency of the bars in main
channels to silt up, and of those in side channels to open out The results
of a cut-off. Mr. Molloy's notation The causes and effects of cut-offs
not always the same in different rivers Engineers of fixed structures
ought to understand the causes of scour, so as to be able to provide againstl it.
CHAPTER IV.—THE PHYSICS OF ALLUVIAL RIVERS IN GENERAL.
General description of the rivers under reference Comparative size of these
rivers in the cold weather and in flood The meanderings of the rivers,
and their increase in length as the sea is approached Extent of a river's
meanderings, and the cause A description of what goes on during flood
time The higher flooded areas tend to grow higher by silt deposition
A description of "short-cuts, cut-offs, and avulsions Lawless action down
stream following a successful cut off A description of what is called erosion
How the inhabitants of the river bottoms are affected by cut-offs
How the inhabitants of the river bottoms are affected by erosion. The extent
of erosion The effect on the inhabitants of the river bottom lands, of
the continual erosion and re-formation of their lands The extent of erosion
of cultivable lands in the Punjab The effect of duration of flood on bed
changes Changes of bed conditions during fall of flood Effects of
fall of flood stage, on silt deposition and transportation First period of
fall of river stage, when the supply of water from above is adequate The
effect of duration of flow while the supply of water is adequate Second
period, when the supply of water from above is failing A valuable series
of observations of 30 years ago on the river Sutlej Deductions from the
observations of 30 years ago on the river Sutlej More such sets of obser
vations much to be desired A permanent state of stability rendered
impossible by the alternations of high and low river stages How velocity
varies with depth, even with the same slope Peculiarities of a low stage
river A typical bit of an Indian Alluvial river The extent of scour
in the bed of the Gorai river A suggested improvement in the order of
the chapters of this book.
CHAPTER V.—THE DEEP SCOUR WHICH ENDANGERS PERMANENT STRUCTURES.
Local areas of hard clay, how formed Local areas of hard clay, how acted
on by the river Water shallow as a rule opposite banks that are caving
rapidly. But deep scour often found alongside banks composed of hard
material Deep scour may be expected wherever a swirl is generated
The action of swirls or whirlpools Swirls how caused, and the location
of scour-holes The three classes of scour to be provided for.
CHAPTER VI.—THE CLASSIFICATION OF RIVER SANDS.
Great differences between river sands The mechanical analysis of river sands
Some results of the mechanical analysis of sands Suggestion for
the classification of sands Results of the mechanical analysis of some
sands from the Indus and its affluents Great contrast between the sands
of Madras rivers and those of the Indus and its affluents, and of the Ganges
Precautions to be taken when making a mechanical analysis of sand
