China’s dam project opens the floodgates of concern
1 month, 2 weeks ago

China’s dam project opens the floodgates of concern

The Hindu  

The planned construction by China, of a massive hydroelectric dam on the lower section of the upper stream of the Yarlung Zangbo river in Tibet, has become a matter of concern for India due to its potential impact on the local environment and spillover, the flow of water downstream, and bilateral relations. While the dam project aligns with China’s ambitious energy transition goals, its serious implications for India cannot be understated. However, many of China’s lower riparian states accuse it for using water as a ‘powerful tool’. India, which is one of the lower riparian states, depends on rivers that originate in Tibet for one-third of its river water supply.

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History of this topic

‘Environmental risk posed by China’s Medog Dam project’
6 days, 12 hours ago

‘Environmental risk posed by China’s Medog Dam project’

Hindustan Times  

The office of Tibet in Geneva has flagged the significant risks posed by the planned construction of the China’s Medog Dam on Tibet’s Yarlung Tsangpo River–Brahmaputra in India–during the 58th session of the UN Human Rights Council. According to a report published by Dharamshala-based Central Tibetan Administration, Phuntsok Tobgyal, UN Advocacy Officer at the Office of Tibet in Geneva, in …

Centre has taken note of China's announcement of dam project: Minister Kirti Vardhan Singh in Parliament
1 month, 3 weeks ago

Centre has taken note of China's announcement of dam project: Minister Kirti Vardhan Singh in Parliament

The Hindu  

“The Union Government has “taken note” of China’s announcement of a dam project on the lower reaches of the Yarlung Tsangpo river in the Tibet Autonomous Region,” the Centre informed the Parliament on Thursday Minister of State for External Affairs Kirti Vardhan Singh in a written response to a query in Rajya Sabha also said various issues relating to trans-border …

India plans Rs 1.5 lakh crore hydropower dam on Siang to counter China
2 months ago

India plans Rs 1.5 lakh crore hydropower dam on Siang to counter China

India Today  

India is taking a strategic step to counter China's infrastructural advancements along the border by planning to construct one of the largest hydropower dams on the Siang River in Arunachal Pradesh. With an ambitious budget of Rs 1.5 lakh crore, the project is designed to hold a massive water storage capacity of 9.2 billion cubic meters, addressing not only energy …

Beijing’s mega-dam on Tsangpo River threatens Tibet as much as India and Bangladesh
Trending News
2 months ago

Beijing’s mega-dam on Tsangpo River threatens Tibet as much as India and Bangladesh

Firstpost  

Will scientific thinking and common sense, or the power and money lobby, prevail? Very few news items have generated as much ink as the announcement of Beijing’s approval of the construction of a mega hydropower project, which could produce three times more energy than the Three Gorges Dam, on the Yarlung Tsangpo River in Tibet. In 2020, Yan Zhiyong, then …

Beijing’s mega-dam on Tsangpo River threatens Tibet as much as India and Bangladesh
Trending News
2 months ago

Beijing’s mega-dam on Tsangpo River threatens Tibet as much as India and Bangladesh

Firstpost  

Will scientific thinking and common sense, or the power and money lobby, prevail? Very few news items have generated as much ink as the announcement of Beijing’s approval of the construction of a mega hydropower project, which could produce three times more energy than the Three Gorges Dam, on the Yarlung Tsangpo River in Tibet. In 2020, Yan Zhiyong, then …

How China is damming rivers in Tibet to build ‘liquid bomb’ against India
2 months, 2 weeks ago

How China is damming rivers in Tibet to build ‘liquid bomb’ against India

Firstpost  

Since China has effectively dammed every river that flows into India, it can use water as a weapon of war by controlling releases as part of a military strategy The Brahmaputra system contains more than 30 per cent of India's water resources. The Mega Dam On 25 December 2024, China’s state-run Xinhua news agency reported about the plan for the …

Tibet earthquake: A wake-up call on seismic risks to dam China is building on Brahmaputra
2 months, 3 weeks ago

Tibet earthquake: A wake-up call on seismic risks to dam China is building on Brahmaputra

Firstpost  

The earthquake in Tibet not only caused significant destruction but also intensified concerns about the safety of the Brahmaputra hydropower project, a colossal venture in a highly seismic zone Damaged houses are pictured after an earthquake at a village in Shigatse, Tibet Autonomous Region, China on January 7, 2025. In a map featured by South China Morning Post from the …

Why China wants control over a vital Indian resource
2 months, 3 weeks ago

Why China wants control over a vital Indian resource

India Today  

India and China, already at odds over various geopolitical and territorial issues, could soon face a new frontier of conflict—water. A massive $137 billion dam that China plans to construct on the Brahmaputra River has sparked fresh concerns in India, highlighting a long-standing fear of water being weaponised. With its control over the river’s origin, China can manipulate water flow, …

China says its world's biggest dam over Brahmaputra will not impact water flows to India
2 months, 3 weeks ago

China says its world's biggest dam over Brahmaputra will not impact water flows to India

The Hindu  

China on Monday reiterated its plan to build the world’s biggest dam over the Brahmaputra River in Tibet near the Indian border, saying the planned project has gone through rigorous scientific verification and will not have any negative impact on downstream countries – India and Bangladesh. Let me reiterate that the decision to build the project was made after rigorous …

World's biggest dam over Brahmaputra will not impact water flows to India: China
Trending News
2 months, 3 weeks ago

World's biggest dam over Brahmaputra will not impact water flows to India: China

Deccan Chronicle  

Beijing: China on Monday reiterated its plan to build the world's biggest dam over the Brahmaputra River in Tibet near the Indian border, saying the planned project has gone through rigorous scientific verification and will not have any negative impact on downstream countries India and Bangladesh. China's construction of the hydropower project over in the Yarlung Tsangpo River downstream has …

China claims its world's biggest dam over Brahmaputra won't affect water flow to India
Top News
2 months, 3 weeks ago

China claims its world's biggest dam over Brahmaputra won't affect water flow to India

India TV News  

Beijing: China on Monday reiterated its plan to build the world's biggest dam over the Brahmaputra River in Tibet near the Indian border, saying the planned project has gone through rigorous scientific verification and will not have any negative impact on downstream countries -- India and Bangladesh. China's construction of the hydropower project over in the Yarlung Tsangpo River downstream …

China's plan to build dams along a contested border with India is raising tensions
2 months, 3 weeks ago

China's plan to build dams along a contested border with India is raising tensions

NPR  

China's plan to build dams along a contested border with India is raising tensions China is planning to build a series of enormous hydropower dams. NPR's Ayesha Rascoe talks to Georgetown University professor Mark Giordano about the project and its effect on Sino-Indian relations. GIORDANO: The area where this dam is built on the Tibetan Plateau borders the Indian state …

India's reminder to China over Brahmaputra Dam: Activities upstream shouldn't harm downstream states' interest
2 months, 3 weeks ago

India's reminder to China over Brahmaputra Dam: Activities upstream shouldn't harm downstream states' interest

India TV News  

Days after China announced the construction of the world's largest dam on the Brahmaputra River, India has responded by saying that it will 'protect its interests'. New Delhi also sent a reminder to Beijing asserting its rights to the waters of the river while seeking transparency over China's mega construction plan in the environmentally sensitive Himalayan zone in Tibet. Indian …

India urges China to ensure dams on upstream Brahmaputra don't harm downstream regions
2 months, 4 weeks ago

India urges China to ensure dams on upstream Brahmaputra don't harm downstream regions

Op India  

India has urged the Chinese side to ensure that the downstream states of the Brahmaputra river are not harmed by activities in upstream areas, the Ministry of External Affairs said on Friday. “The Chinese side has been urged to ensure that the interests of downstream states of the Brahmaputra are not harmed by activities in upstream areas,” MEA spokesperson Randhir …

India reacts to China's dam plan, vows to ‘protect our interests’
2 months, 4 weeks ago

India reacts to China's dam plan, vows to ‘protect our interests’

Hindustan Times  

India on Friday reacted to China's plan to construct a gigantic dam on the Brahmaputra river in Tibet, saying New Delhi will continue to monitor and take necessary measures to protect its interests. Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal speaks during weekly media briefing in New Delhi on Friday "We have seen the information released by Xinhua on 25 …

India Slams China’s Announcement Of 2 New Counties In Ladakh, Makes This Request Over Brahmaputra Dam Project
2 months, 4 weeks ago

India Slams China’s Announcement Of 2 New Counties In Ladakh, Makes This Request Over Brahmaputra Dam Project

ABP News  

Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal on Friday said that India has lodged protest with China through diplomatic channels over the establishment of two new counties in the Hotan Prefecture since parts of their jurisdiction fall in the Union Territory of Ladakh. India Raises Concern Over Brahmaputra Dam Project In Tibet Meanwhile, China is also set to establish a …

The dangers of China’s planned megadam
2 months, 4 weeks ago

The dangers of China’s planned megadam

Live Mint  

China is giving the world a dubious gift. The Great Bend hydroelectric project, which would sit on China’s contested border with India, would inflame tensions between the two giants and aggravate other South Asian nations. The ambitious new complex would have three times the power-generating capacity of the world’s current largest hydropower project—the Three Gorges Dam on China’s Yangtze River. …

China Dam On Brahmaputra Will Make Ecosystem Fragile, Warns Assam CM Himanta Sarma
2 months, 4 weeks ago

China Dam On Brahmaputra Will Make Ecosystem Fragile, Warns Assam CM Himanta Sarma

ABP News  

Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma has flagged concerns over China's proposed dam on the Brahmaputra in Tibet, saying the project will make the entire ecosystem fragile and dry. He also said the dam will make Assam depend on rainwater from Arunachal Pradesh and Bhutan. "We have already communicated that if this dam comes then the Brahmaputra ecosystem will become …

Why India, Bangladesh must worry about China's mega Brahmaputra dam
Trending News
3 months ago

Why India, Bangladesh must worry about China's mega Brahmaputra dam

India Today  

China’s decision to construct the world’s ‘largest’ dam on the Brahmaputra river, locally known as the Yarlung Tsangpo in Tibet, is a transformative moment in hydropower engineering. However, the dam also underscores China’s geopolitical aspirations, raising concerns about its impact on downstream countries like India and Bangladesh. By harnessing the hydropower potential of the Brahmaputra, the project is expected to …

Will China's Massive Dam Project Spark A Water War With India?
3 months ago

Will China's Massive Dam Project Spark A Water War With India?

India Today  

China’s controversial plan to construct the world’s largest dam on the Brahmaputra River in Tibet is raising alarm bells in India, as tensions between the two nations escalate. Beijing claims that the ambitious project is primarily for energy generation, but experts are concerned that it could drastically disrupt the river’s water flow, sparking a potential water crisis for millions downstream. …

Siang project not just for generating power but mitigating flood risks posed by China: Arunachal CM
3 months ago

Siang project not just for generating power but mitigating flood risks posed by China: Arunachal CM

Hindustan Times  

Itanagar, Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Pema Khandu said the Siang Upper Multipurpose Project, estimated to cost ₹1.13 lakh crore, was being planned by the Centre not just for generating electricity but to maintain the natural flow of the river all year round and mitigate risks of flooding if China released excess water. Siang project not just for generating power but …

China defends plan to build world's largest dam over Brahmaputra River in Tibet; says will not affect lower reaches
Trending News
3 months ago

China defends plan to build world's largest dam over Brahmaputra River in Tibet; says will not affect lower reaches

The Hindu  

China on Friday defended its plan to build the world's largest dam on the Brahmaputra river in Tibet, saying the project will not “negatively affect” lower riparian states and that safety issues have been addressed through decades of studies. She said China’s hydropower development in the lower reaches of the Yarlung Zangbo river aims to speed up the development of …

China Plans Dam Near India That Could Be World’s Biggest
3 months ago

China Plans Dam Near India That Could Be World’s Biggest

Live Mint  

-- Follow Bloomberg India on WhatsApp for exclusive content and analysis on what billionaires, businesses and markets are doing. China is pressing ahead with plans to construct a mega-dam near its contested border with India, a colossal undertaking that could generate three times as much power as the Three Gorges Dam. The dam could become a source of tension between …

Yingkiong dam: India's last line of defence against China’s 'water bombs' on the Brahmaputra
3 months ago

Yingkiong dam: India's last line of defence against China’s 'water bombs' on the Brahmaputra

Firstpost  

With China’s massive dam-building projects on the horizon, the proposed Yingkiong dam stands as India’s last hope to preserve the flow and future of the Brahmaputra From the melodious strains of Mahabahu Brahmaputra to the haunting beauty of Bistirna Paarore, the voice of Bharat Ratna Bhupen Hazarika immortalised the river Brahmaputra as a symbol of might, beauty and timeless grandeur. …

China defends plan to build world's largest dam over Brahmaputra River in Tibet
3 months ago

China defends plan to build world's largest dam over Brahmaputra River in Tibet

New Indian Express  

BEIJING: China on Friday defended its plan to build the world's largest dam on the Brahmaputra River in Tibet saying that the project will not affect riparian states. China on Wednesday approved the construction of the world's largest dam, stated to be the planet's biggest infra project on the Brahmaputra River in Tibet close to the Indian border, raising concerns …

China approves world’s largest, $137-billion dam on the Brahmaputra close to the Indian border
3 months ago

China approves world’s largest, $137-billion dam on the Brahmaputra close to the Indian border

The Hindu  

China has approved the construction of the world's largest dam, stated to be the planet's biggest infra project costing $137 billion, on the Brahmaputra River in Tibet close to the Indian border, raising concerns in riparian states — India and Bangladesh. The Chinese government has approved the construction of a hydropower project in the lower reaches of the Yarlung Zangbo …

China approves world's largest dam over Brahmaputra river close to Indian border
3 months ago

China approves world's largest dam over Brahmaputra river close to Indian border

Deccan Chronicle  

Beijing: China has approved the construction of the world's largest dam, stated to be the planet's biggest infra project costing USD 137 billion, on the Brahmaputra River in Tibet close to the Indian border, raising concerns in riparian states - India and Bangladesh. The Chinese government has approved the construction of a hydropower project in the lower reaches of the …

China gives go-ahead to construction of world's largest dam over Brahmaputra river: Will it impact India?
Trending News
3 months ago

China gives go-ahead to construction of world's largest dam over Brahmaputra river: Will it impact India?

India TV News  

In what can be seen as a major infrastructural push in the Himalayan topography, China has given a go-ahead to the construction of the world's largest dam, dubbed the planet's biggest infra project, on the Brahmaputra River in Tibet close to the Indian border. Impact on India The announcement is likely to raise concerns in the neighbourhood as the dam …

China plans to build world's largest dam on Brahmaputra near India border
3 months ago

China plans to build world's largest dam on Brahmaputra near India border

India Today  

China has approved the construction of the world's largest dam, stated to be the planet's biggest infra project costing USD 137 billion, on the Brahmaputra River in Tibet close to the Indian border, raising concerns in riparian states - India and Bangladesh. The Chinese government has approved the construction of a hydropower project in the lower reaches of the Yarlung …

India’s plan to build hydropower plants in the Himalayas angers China
8 months, 2 weeks ago

India’s plan to build hydropower plants in the Himalayas angers China

The Independent  

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy China has reacted angrily to …

Interlinking of Rivers: Solution to India’s growing water problem or recipe to ecological imbalance?
1 year, 2 months ago

Interlinking of Rivers: Solution to India’s growing water problem or recipe to ecological imbalance?

New Indian Express  

CHENNAI: At the historic Mahabalipuram a few days ago, an All India Secretaries’ Conference on Water Vision@2047-Way Ahead was organised by the Union Ministry of Jal Shakti. The Centre and some ‘beneficiary’ lower riparian states argue that India has a rapidly growing problem of water stress and there is a need to use most of the runoff to meet its …

Arunachal Pradesh farmers’ body rejects 10,000 MW hydropower plan on Siang River
2 years ago

Arunachal Pradesh farmers’ body rejects 10,000 MW hydropower plan on Siang River

The Hindu  

Two Arunachal Pradesh-based organisations, including a farmers’ collective, have asked the State Government to scrap a deal for executing a proposed 10,000 MW hydropower project on the Siang River. Accusing the State Government of inking a deal with the National Hydropower Power Corporation for the mega-dam without taking the local people into confidence, Siang Indigenous Farmers’ Forum and the Indigenous …

Beyond Joshimath or Metok: Unless China stops amassing troops along LAC, development race will heat up further
2 years, 2 months ago

Beyond Joshimath or Metok: Unless China stops amassing troops along LAC, development race will heat up further

Firstpost  

Till Everyone realises that ‘development’ does not solve all the problems of humanity, there will be the danger of new earthquakes, landslides, or ‘sinking’ towns The Himalaya has been in the news and not for a good reason: The pilgrimage town of Joshimath is sinking. However, due to poor planning and levels of low construction, the roads have got damaged …

China steps up preparations for future water war with India: Report
2 years, 2 months ago

China steps up preparations for future water war with India: Report

Op India  

China has stepped up preparations for a future water war with India by accelerating the construction of a huge dam on the Mabja Zangbo river, just a few kilometres north of the trijunction border with India and Nepal, Kathmandu-based online magazine Epardafas reported. Experts and analysts say that China by building a dam near Uttarakhand can establish complete control over …

India plans ‘buffers’ in proposed Arunachal hydropower project to counter ‘China threat’
2 years, 2 months ago

India plans ‘buffers’ in proposed Arunachal hydropower project to counter ‘China threat’

The Hindu  

Concerns over China’s proposed 60,000 MW hydropower in Medog, Tibet are influencing the design of a proposed hydropower project in Arunachal Pradesh’s Upper Siang district. Still only in the planning stage, a ‘pre-feasibility report’ on the 11,000 MW project, or more than five times the size of the largest such projects in India – has been submitted to the Central …

In nature’s warning signs, a nudge to riparian states
2 years, 6 months ago

In nature’s warning signs, a nudge to riparian states

The Hindu  

There has been an increase in the magnitude, the frequency and the intensity of floods in many parts of the world. On customary international law In accordance with customary international law, no state has to use its territory in a manner that causes harm to another state while using a shared natural resource; this amounts to saying that there is …

Flood management that cannot be watered down
3 years, 6 months ago

Flood management that cannot be watered down

The Hindu  

Over the years, many of Bihar’s districts have been facing serious challenges with recurrent and massive flooding. Flood protection work As in the existing India-Nepal Agreement on water resources, the State government is authorised to execute flood protection works up to critical stretches inside Nepal territory along the India-Nepal border. Even during the COVID-19 pandemic, the Water Resources Department, Government …

A fine line: The Hindu Editorial on development and conservation
3 years, 7 months ago

A fine line: The Hindu Editorial on development and conservation

The Hindu  

The need for infrastructure development in the Himalayan region rubs up against the environmental and ecological challenges that they pose. The Uttarakhand government has for decades envisaged hydroelectric projects as the way forward to power the State, premised on the region’s undulating topography. There have been divisions even within various Central ministries: the Water Resources Ministry, which manages the NMCG, …

Explained | Why are hydropower projects in the Himalayas risky?
3 years, 7 months ago

Explained | Why are hydropower projects in the Himalayas risky?

The Hindu  

The Environment Ministry, in an affidavit placed in the Supreme Court earlier this month, has disclosed that it has permitted seven hydroelectric power projects, which are reportedly in advanced stages of construction, to go ahead. The Das committee recommended all six projects with design modifications to some, and this gives lie to the Environment Ministry’s current stance. Following the break …

Hydropower projects are wreaking havoc in the Himalayas
4 years ago

Hydropower projects are wreaking havoc in the Himalayas

Al Jazeera  

On February 7, a Himalayan glacier broke and caused a flash flood in the North Indian state of Uttarakhand. “It shows that nature will strike back if we disregard the ecological limits of fragile regions like the Himalayas through reckless dam building and other infrastructure development.” After the 2013 flash flood, the Supreme Court of India also mandated a national …

China gives green light for first downstream dams on Brahmaputra
4 years ago

China gives green light for first downstream dams on Brahmaputra

The Hindu  

A draft of China’s new Five-Year Plan, which is set to be formally approved on March 11, has given the green light for the first dams to be built on the lower reaches of Yarlung Zangbo river, as the Brahmaputra is known in Tibet, before it flows into India. The draft outline of the new Five-Year Plan for 2025 and …

Troubled mountains: On Uttarakhand glacier disaster
4 years, 1 month ago

Troubled mountains: On Uttarakhand glacier disaster

The Hindu  

The staggering collapse of part of a glacier in Uttarakhand’s Nanda Devi mountain and the ensuing floods that have claimed many lives come as a deadly reminder that this fragile, geologically dynamic region can never be taken for granted. Once the crucible of environmentalism, epitomised by Sunderlal Bahuguna, Gaura Devi and the Chipko movement, the State’s deep gorges and canyons …

Hazardous ideas for the Himalayas
4 years, 3 months ago

Hazardous ideas for the Himalayas

The Hindu  

In an article published on the website of the Central Committee of the Communist Youth League, China announced that it is planning to build a major hydropower project as a part of its 14th Five-Year Plan, on the Yarlung Zangbo River, in Mêdog County in Tibet. The northeast Himalayan bend has experienced several large earthquakes of magnitude 7 and above …

‘Carefully monitoring’ Brahmaputra amid China dam plans, says India
4 years, 3 months ago

‘Carefully monitoring’ Brahmaputra amid China dam plans, says India

The Hindu  

India on Thursday said it “carefully monitors all developments on the Brahmaputra ” river, even as Beijing said it was its “legitimate right” to develop hydropower projects on the lower reaches of the river. A State-run Chinese hydropower firm, POWERCHINA, is planning to build the first downstream dam on the Brahmaputra, known as the Yarlung Zangbo in Tibet, with officials …

Damming Brahmaputra: With mega-dam plans, China might end up hurting itself more than India
4 years, 3 months ago

Damming Brahmaputra: With mega-dam plans, China might end up hurting itself more than India

Firstpost  

The true idea of a river is not of a single stream of water between two banks, but a nervous system of watery arteries and capillaries that form the circulatory system of a living ecosystem in a particular river basin. Any event related to the Brahmaputra, even if it is only a natural one, also gets certain members of India’s …

India plans dam on Brahmaputra river against Chinese projects
4 years, 3 months ago

India plans dam on Brahmaputra river against Chinese projects

Al Jazeera  

Indian official tells Reuters big dam in Arunachal Pradesh is aimed at mitigating the adverse effect of Chinese dam projects upstream. “The need of the hour is to have a big dam in Arunachal Pradesh to mitigate the adverse impact of the Chinese dam projects,” TS Mehra, a senior official in India’s federal water ministry, told the Reuters news agency. …

India Plans Dam on Brahmaputra River to Offset Chinese Construction Upstream
4 years, 3 months ago

India Plans Dam on Brahmaputra River to Offset Chinese Construction Upstream

News 18  

India is considering a plan to build a 10 gigawatts hydropower project in a remote eastern state, an Indian official said on Tuesday, following reports that China could construct dams on a section of the Brahmaputra river. “The need of the hour is to have a big dam in Arunachal Pradesh to mitigate the adverse impact of the Chinese dam …

India plans dam on Brahmaputra to offset Chinese construction upstream
4 years, 3 months ago

India plans dam on Brahmaputra to offset Chinese construction upstream

Live Mint  

India is considering a plan to build a 10 gigawatts hydropower project in a remote eastern state, an Indian official said on Tuesday, following reports that China could construct dams on a section of the Brahmaputra river. "Our proposal is under consideration at the highest level in the government," Mehra said, adding the Indian plan would create a large water …

Is China muddying Brahmaputra waters?
7 years, 3 months ago

Is China muddying Brahmaputra waters?

Live Mint  

Sporadic reports on China’s water diversion plans on the Yarlung Tsangpo, the upper stream of the Brahmaputra river, are invariably met with sustained overreactions in India. Even a cursory check tells us how, despite China having 50% spatial share of this 3,000km-long water system, low precipitation and desert conditions mean that Tibet generates only 25% of its total basin discharge, …

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