Subscribe
Are hydropower projects increasing the incidence of natural disasters in Himachal Pradesh? That question is being asked in the wake of the cloudbursts that took place in the Himalayan state during the last one week, killing six people while 47 are still missing. Hydropower projects have been or are being built in four of the six locations where the cloudbursts took place, environmental activists have told Down To Earth (DTE).
Furthermore, most incidents of natural disasters that occurred in Himachal Pradesh during the last one year happened around some power or national highway project.
Environmentalist Kulbhushan Upamanyu, one of the founders of non-profit Himalaya Niti Abhiyan, told DTE that huge changes are seen in the ecology of any area where a hydropower project is being constructed.
Dams, that are built in power projects areas, contain wood and other organic matter in the underwater debris. They slowly rot in the absence of oxygen, which produces methane gas. Methane, among the most potent greenhouse gases, causes the temperature of the location to spike much above normal. Due to this, disasters like cloudbursts and landslides occur more in hydropower project areas.
Upamanyu noted that after the Pong dam was built on the Beas river in Himachal Pradesh in 1976, the ecology of the area above it completely changed. There used to be more rainy days earlier. Now, they have reduced and incidents of heavy rain have increased.
Cost of power
From January 1 to July 31, incidents of cloudburst have occurred at seven places in Himachal Pradesh. There were hydropower projects at four of the seven locations.
On July 25, the Anjani Mahadev drain (nullah) in Manali district’s Dhundi was flooded after a cloudburst. This led to the closure of the national highway. A 9-megawatt (MW) power project has been constructed at this place.
Apart from this, on the night of July 31, cloudburst incidents occurred simultaneously at four places in Himachal. A cloudburst triggered heavy flooding, which caused the dam of the Malana Power Project Stage 1 to burst. This led to heavy waterlogging downstream, leading to extensive damage.
On the same night, a cloudburst incident took place in Samej near Jhakri in the Rampur area of Shimla district, near a 6 MW power project. Two people died and 34 people are missing.
Apart from this, there was huge damage due to a cloudburst near Tosh in the Parvati Valley on July 31. The Parbati-II hydroelectric project is located at this place.
Seventy-three people have died and property worth Rs 648 crore damaged in Himachal so far during the 2024 monsoon season.
Natural disasters in years past also occurred near some power project or national highway.
The 2023 disasters in Kullu Malani and the Sainj Valley resulted in loss of lives and property worth thousands of crores. The Malana, Sainj, Parvati, Larji power projects, as well as the Bhakra and Pong dams, were major factors in the huge losses incurred. The disasters caused losses of Rs 12,000 crore and killed 441 people.
In 2022, 276 lives were lost and losses of Rs 939 crore incurred. In 2021, 476 lives were lost in natural disasters and property worth Rs 1,151 crore was damaged.
Sunil Dhar, professor of environmental science at Jammu Central University, told DTE that the mountains of Himachal Pradesh have become weak and incidents of landslides are becoming more frequent due to human interference, including unscientific felling, dumping of soil and other reasons.
Manshi Asher, co-founder of Himdhara Collective which works on disaster management and environment in Himachal Pradesh, told DTE that the land itself undergoes a change in areas where a lot of trees are cut for the construction of projects.
She added that even a small incident turns into a major disaster in such areas. Digging and dumping of soil around the project sites obstructs the flow of the river or water source and whenever it rains, it creates a flood-like situation.
A project’s impact on the environment has to be assessed before work on it starts, according to Asher. But this is usually not done. Even if it is, the assessment is not proper.
“Palampur has received the maximum rainfall of 212 mm on July 31. But there was no damage there. Kullu, Manali and Rampur, where projects are in the works, have suffered a lot of damage despite receiving less rain. There are 174 small and big hydropower projects in Himachal Pradesh, from which 11,209 MW electricity is being produced. Himachal has the capacity to generate 30,000 MW electricity. The state government is working to increase it,” said Asher.
Realisation dawning?
For quite some time now, people have started linking the increasing natural calamities in the state with hydropower projects. Looking at past experiences, they are becoming vocal against future power projects.
Movements against power projects have been started at many places in Mandi, Chamba, Kinnaur, Shimla and Lahaul-Spiti districts of Himachal Pradesh.
Mahesh Negi, a youth from Kinnaur who is running a No Means No campaign against hydropower projects in the state, says that locals have had to face the brunt of natural disasters in many parts of Himachal due to power projects.
“People say Kinnaur has been destroyed due to hydro projects. Hence, they will continue to strongly oppose the start of new power projects in Kinnaur in the future,” said Negi.
Experts have opined that before constructing projects in Himachal Pradesh, the ecology of any location should be properly assessed. Apart from this, local opinion should also be considered.
Also, the recommendations of the Abhay Shukla Committee formed on the instructions of the Himachal Pradesh High Court should be kept in mind for the construction of power projects.