Aug 2026: Failure to Manage Fly Ash Dams, Disposal in MP, UP & Chhattisgarh

September 5, 2026 SANDRPLeave a comment

(Feature Image: Collage showing in left Sasan UMPP’s damaged fly ash dyke, in centre NTPC’s Unchahar plant damaged fly ash pipeline and on right truck found dumping fly ash illegally in Korba. Source: Amar Ujala, Dainik Bhaskar, ETV Bharat)

There have been at least three incidents of leakages from fly ash dykes at Reliance’s Sasan UMPP in MP & NTPC’s Unchahar Plant in Raebareli, UP in Aug. 2026. All the three incidents have considerably affected nearby village and farmer communities in both the states. Notably, both projects have also experienced ash dyke related leakages and failures in the recent past, raising serious concerns over safety of the structures and safe disposal of the toxic fly ash.

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Aug-Sep 2026: Mandakini Flood Disaster in Chitrakoot

September 4, 2026September 4, 2026 SANDRPLeave a comment

(Feature Image: Screengrab of drone video capturing severe flood spell in Mandakini river in Chitrakoot town, Satna on Aug. 29, 2026. Source: Hindustan Samachar)

The Mandakini (Paisuni) river has witnessed a major flood event in the pilgrimage town spread across Satna and Chitrakoot districts of Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh during August 28-30, 2026. The deluge was triggered after prolonged heavy rainfall in the upper hilly catchment of river, which broke records set 23 years ago. The flood spell has killed two people and left one missing in addition to causing widespread damage to public and private properties.

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Dams · River Front Development · Urban Rivers

Unravelling Pune River Front Development: The Five Questions

September 4, 2026September 4, 2026 SANDRPLeave a comment

The Pune Riverfront Development – designed by HCP Design, Planning and Management Pvt. Ltd. is the same company behind projects like Central Vista and Sabarmati River Front. The riverfront development in Pune is claimed to be a “copy paste” of that from Sabarmati River – a river basin with completely different landscape and conditions than the Mula -Mutha Basin. Experts and researchers flag various faults with this riverfront development. Here’s what architect and river front researcher Sarang Yadwadkar has to say about this particular project from an urban planning lens through his presentation. In this presentation he connects the project DPR, correspondence with and amongst departments, government reports, and government circulars. He connects these to flag the discrepancies in the project which highlights the violation of guidelines and how the rights of citizens to be free from adverse impacts of climate change are violated.

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Climate Change · Dam floods · Floods · Hydropower · Nepal

Himalayan Floods Are Not Just a Water Event, They Are a Debris Event

September 3, 2026September 4, 2026 SANDRPLeave a comment

As I write this, over 1,200 people are dead across Nepal and China, and nearly 5500 more are missing. About 900 people are trapped in hydropower tunnels clogged by debris. Herculean national and international efforts are being made to bring them out, but the tunnel entrances are sealed by dense plugs of compressed sediment, and rescuers have no idea of the extent of that blockage. An Australian tunnel expert summed up, “we might only have to dig 10 meters, or we might have to dig 100 meters.” [1]

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Dams, Rivers & People

DRP 310826: Nepal’s Rasuwa flood disaster: Is there a limit to Human Folly?

August 31, 2026August 31, 2026 SANDRPLeave a comment

(Feature Image: Map of Hydropower Projects and condition in Trishuli- Bhote Koshi Basin Map by SANDRP made with Google LLM)

Even as Nepal, Tibet, India and other countries whose citizens are in missing list following the Aug 26 2026 Rasuwa flood disaster for Nepal, and even as the full dimensions of the disaster are still unfolding, a Bloomberg journalist asked SANDRP a pertinent question. Seeing the major role played by operating and under construction hydropower projects in the disaster and the missing list of hundreds of people from such projects, he noted that deaths at disaster hit hydropower projects in Himalayas is a recurring story. During and after every such disaster, there is talk of learning lessons such projects, but there is little change in decision making process. His question was, is there a limit to human folly, beyond which we will see some genuine change?

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Climate Change · Dams · Floods · Gandak · Hydropower · Nepal

Nepal Disaster and Hydropower: How Global Banks Downplayed the Risks they Knew

August 29, 2026August 29, 2026 SANDRPLeave a comment

On the 28th August 2026, Nepali officials roughly doubled their tally of missing people to over 1,900, saying hydropower producers had only recently shared a count of unaccounted-for workers at projects in the devastated river valleys. It is feared that over 900 people are missing from hydropower projects.

This might be a watershed moment for the disaster-torn hydropower boom in South Asia, funded many times by International Financial Corporations and Multilateral Banks like ADB and World Bank, and also Chinese Exim bank.

Hundreds of hydropower labourers, engineers and locals are currently trapped inside tunnels of projects like Upper Trishuli 1 and Trishuli 3A, the latter funded by a loan from China’s Exim bank in the flood ravaged Nepal. More than 350 have been rescued by the valiant efforts of Nepal Army, but many more are still trapped inside the tunnel, including Indians.

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Climate Change · Dam floods · Floods · Gandak · Himalayas

Himalayan Disaster: August 2026 Bhote Koshi Deluge

August 28, 2026August 28, 2026 SANDRPLeave a comment

On the morning of Wednesday, August 26, 2026, one of the most severe high-mountain fluvial disasters struck the transboundary Tibet–Nepal frontier. By now we have seen the terrifying and incomprehensible footage of the disaster.

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floodplains · Floods · Yamuna River

यमुना: दिल्ली में बाढ़ का बढ़ता खतरा और नदी बाढ़ क्षेत्र प्रबंधन

August 27, 2026 SANDRPLeave a comment

(Feature Image: Natural vegetation in the Yamuna floodplain is being damaged during the levelling of land at the Yamuna Reservoir Project, developed over 17 acres near Sungarpur village in Delhi’s Burari area in 2019. Bhim Singh Rawat, Aug. 23, 2026)

इसमें कोई संदेह नहीं है कि दिल्ली में यमुना के बाढ़ क्षेत्र (खादर) में बढ़ते अतिक्रमण ने प्राकृतिक बाढ़ को आपदा में बदलने का खतरा पैदा कर दिया है। खादर क्षेत्र का सीमांगन नहीं होने के कारण ओ-ज़ोन (यमुना खादर) का सही तरह से क्रियान्वयन नहीं हो रहा है।

लेकिन वर्तमान बहस समस्या के केवल एक हिस्से तक सीमित है, जबकि इसके मूल कारणों पर पर्याप्त ध्यान नहीं दिया जा रहा। सबसे पहले यह समझना जरूरी है कि यमुना के खादर पर किस प्रकार के अतिक्रमण हुए हैं और इसकी सुरक्षा के लिए कौन-सा कानूनी एवं संस्थागत ढांचा उपलब्ध है।

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Rainfall

June July 2026: District wise rainfall in India’s SW Monsoon

August 25, 2026 SANDRPLeave a comment

In July 2026, India received 290.3 mm (294.3 mm in July 2025, 306.6 mm in July 2024 [i], 318.4 in July 2023 [ii] and 327.7 mm in July 2022 [iii]) rainfall, 3.5% above (4.9% above normal in July 2025, 9.3 % above in July 2024, 13.5% above normal in July 2023 and 16.8% above normal in July 2022) the normal July rainfall of 280.5 mm as per India Meteorological department. So this is the fifth consecutive year when rainfall in July is above normal, the quantum has gone down with each passing year during these last five years. In July 2021, the rainfall was 266.1 mm [iv], about 6.7% below normal and in July 2020, the rainfall was 257.1 mm [v], or about 9.9% below normal.

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DRP

DRP 240826: Europe’s major Rivers are drying: Major Warning for South Asia

August 24, 2026August 30, 2026 SANDRPLeave a comment

A number of Rivers of Europe, including Rhine, Danube, Loire, Po and Elbe are flowing at record low levels during the last couple of weeks. Europe, in fact has been a region that has the most elaborate policy and institutional structures, better than any other place, for ensuring its rivers flow perennially and healthily. This is partly also because of its economic, social dependance on the rivers. When the rivers of such a region are in such dire situation, it is a major wake-up call, also for the rest of the world.

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