Discover India’s ambitious $1 billion plan to accelerate the construction of 12 hydropower stations in Arunachal Pradesh, a northeastern state in the Himalayas. Approved under Prime Minister Modi’s government, each project will receive financial assistance to support local equity holdings and hasten regulatory approvals. This initiative aims to bolster infrastructure in a region disputed by China, which claims Arunachal Pradesh as part of southern Tibet. With tensions already high between the two countries over border issues and concerns about Chinese dam projects on the Brahmaputra River, India’s move signals a strategic maneuver in the geopolitical landscape of Asia.
According to two government sources, India intends to invest $1 billion to speed the construction of 12 hydropower units in the northeastern Himalayan state of Arunachal Pradesh, potentially raising tensions with China, which claims the region.
According to reports, the federal finance ministry, led by Nirmala Sitharaman, recently sanctioned financial support of up to 7.5 billion rupees ($89.85 million) for each hydropower project in the northeastern region reports Reuters.
According to people with firsthand knowledge of the situation, around 90 billion rupees will be allocated under the initiative for Arunachal Pradesh’s 12 hydroelectric projects.
The strategy is anticipated to benefit northeastern states by allowing them to fund equity stakes in enterprises they host. Having state governments on board often helps to speed up regulatory clearances, local rehabilitation, and talks to share electricity with the host state.
The plans for the hydropower stations are scheduled to be unveiled in the 2024/2025 federal budget, which Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government will present on July 23, according to sources who declined to be identified because the information is classified.
The Indian finance and electricity ministries, as well as China’s foreign ministry, did not immediately respond to Reuters’ requests for comment.
Last August, the government gave contracts to state-run enterprises NHPC, SJVNL, and NEEPCO for the construction of the 11.5-gigawatt-capacity reactors, which will cost an estimated $11 billion as part of a larger effort to expand infrastructure in the border region.
These power plants were previously enlisted with private sector corporations, but they did not proceed for a variety of reasons.
In the last 20 years, India has built fewer than 15 gigawatts of hydropower plants, while new coal and other renewable energy projects have been roughly ten times as large.
India and China share a 2,500 km (1553.43 miles) mostly unmarked border, on which they fought a war in 1962.
India maintains Arunachal Pradesh is a vital part of the country, but China argues it is part of southern Tibet and has opposed numerous Indian infrastructure projects there.
Following fears that Beijing may build dams on a stretch of the Brahmaputra river, known in China as the Yarlung Tsangbo, which flows from Tibet through Arunachal Pradesh, the Indian government is promoting projects in the eastern region.
India is concerned that Chinese initiatives in the region may cause flash floods or water scarcity.
Both countries are attempting to develop infrastructure along their border regions after skirmishes in the western Himalayas killed 20 Indian and at least four Chinese troops in 2020.
Last week, India’s Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar met with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi in Kazakhstan, and the two agreed to intensify negotiations to resolve border issues.
Recently, GreatGameIndia reported that Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Russia, aiming to finalize a crucial uranium supply agreement for a nuclear power plant in Tamil Nadu.
