Rivers Crossing the Highest Flood Levels in July 2025

August 1, 2025October 2, 2025 SANDRPLeave a comment

(Feature Image: Hydrograph of Pin river at Gulling site in Lahul & Spiti on July 04, 2025)

In July 2025 during the South West Monsoon, we have found rivers crossing their respective Highest Flood Levels (HFL) at least at 12 flood monitoring sites of Central Water Commission (CWC). Of the 12 sites, 11 are in Ganga basin and 1 site is in Narmada basin. The details of all these sites are given in table below. The sixth column of the table is the information about rise in meter (m) over the old HFL, duration (hours-hrs) the river has stayed in extreme floods and number of years (yrs) after the HFL is breached. The 12 sites are spread over 5 states: Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Uttarakhand and Jharkhand.

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Book Review

Book Review: Submerged Worlds & Amazing Stories of India’s Mighty Rivers

April 28, 2025April 29, 2025 SANDRPLeave a comment

“All rivers are living entities. The job of any river is to flow. And it flows in a most systematic and sophisticated manner. As it flows, it nurtures everything around it, everything within it. A flowing river, whether it’s gurgling, bubbling and frothing on rocks and cobbled valleys or silently meandering along its course on the plains, is a happy and healthy river. Like a lap of a mother, the river allows many living beings to make a home and live together…” These introductory lines from the recently published book “Submerged Worlds and Amazing Stories of India’s Mighty Rivers” highlights the significance of a free-flowing river.

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Dams

EAC & FAC Decisions on Dams, Hydro, Irrigation Projects in 2024

January 17, 2025January 18, 2025 SANDRPLeave a comment

This annual overview tracks the minutes of meetings held by Expert Appraisal Committee (EAC) for River Valley and Hydropower Projects between 20 December 2023 and 31 December 2024 for consideration of Dams, Hydroelectric Power (HEP), Pumped Storage Hydro Projects (PSP) and Irrigation related proposals seeking Terms of Reference (TOR) and Environment Clearance (EC) approvals. The analysis also covers various water projects related proposals considered by the Forest Appraisal Committee (FAC) between 15 December 2023 and 26 December 2024 for Forest Clearances (FC).

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DRP News Bulletin

DRP 130125: Will Judiciary take these matters to logical conclusion?

January 13, 2025February 28, 2026 SANDRPLeave a comment

There are at least four cases in this past week where the judiciary has used strong words or taken up crucial issues in water, dams, hydropower projects, wetlands and riverbed mining related issues. In the case related to the safety of Mullaperiyar dam on Kerala-TN border, the Supreme Court has prodded the Centre to wake up from the slumber to ensure that National Dam Safety Authority quickly forms a panel to examine the project. This case has wide ranging repercussions not only about this project, but also functioning of NDSA and other bodies under the Dam Safety Act 2021. Indeed, there is huge question mark as to what extent NDSA and DSA has made our dams any safer.

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DRP News Bulletin

DRP 161224: Arunachal Pradesh needs dialogue on dams

December 16, 2024February 27, 2026 SANDRPLeave a comment

(Feature Image: Resident in upper Siang protesting agaisnt SUMP on Dec. 15. Image source: Ebo Milli @Ebo_Mili_Linggi on X)

Hundreds of People of Siang, East Siang and Upper Siang Districts of Arunachal Pradesh came out in peaceful protests on Dec 14 2024. They opposed the govt effort to deploy armed central and state police forces for a pre-feasibility study for the 12500 MW hydropower project on Siang River, a tributary of Brahmaputra River.

Indeed, as remarkably articulate report by in Arunachal Times said, Siang needs dialogue not guns. In fact, the Chief Minister recently and even the Prime Minister and Union Home Minister had earlier promised to the people of the state that if they do not want big dams, such projects will not be taken without people’s consent as there were options for power and development.

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Gangetic Dolphins

2024: Dams, Mining, Construction Damaging Gangetic Dolphin Habitats

October 20, 2024October 20, 2024 SANDRPLeave a comment

(Feature Image: Dolphin corpse found along Ganga in Sahibganj, Jharkhand in Feb. 2024. Image source: ETV Bharat)

Despite declaring Gangetic Dolphin a National Aquatic Animal in May 2010, launching of Project Dolphin in August 2020 and recognizing October 05 as National Dolphin Day since 2022, the key species indicating river health continues to face unnatural deaths and threats from various developmental activities. This overview highlights the incidents of suspicious death of precious mammal and looming threats on its habitat along with some noteworthy steps being taken by conservationists and governments to protect the endangered species.

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Highest Flood Level

SW Monsoon 2024: Rivers Crossing Highest Flood Levels

October 16, 2024October 2, 2025 SANDRPLeave a comment

During southwest monsoon season 2024, SANDRP has tracked at least 64 flood forecast and flood monitoring sites where the respective rivers have crossed the highest flood levels (HFL). Here we present detailed analysis of these sites along with some key observations and other relevant information. SANDRP’s previous reports on the subject can be seen here: HFL breach incidents in 2018, 2019, 2020, May-Sept 2021, Oct.-Nov 2021, May-June 2022, July-October 2022, June-October 2023.

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DRP News Bulletin

DRP 020924: HYDRA to protect water bodies in Hyderabad – a landmark move?

September 2, 2024February 27, 2026 SANDRPLeave a comment

(Feature Image: An analysis of satellite imaging of 54 lakes taken in 1979 and 2023, secured by the HYDRAA from the NRSA shows that 40 lakes or nearly 75 per cent of lakes have shrunk by half. (Image: Twitter/DC)

The Hyderabad Disaster Response and Asset Monitoring and Protection Agency, or Hydra was established under GO 99, dated July 19 2024. A task the agency has taken up in all seriousness is protection of water bodies in the Hyderabad Capital Region (it includes 4 districts). To begin with it has started demolition of buildings illegally built inside the Full Tank Area (FTL) and Buffer area of the water bodies.

In July, Telangana Chief Minister Revanth Reddy replaced the Enforcement, Vigilance and Disaster Management (EVDM) wing of the government with Hydra, a body mandated to tackle illegal encroachment on water bodies in the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) limits and surrounding areas. Its strength was upgraded from around 800 to 2,200 and its officials came directly under the principal secretary, municipal administration and urban development or the CM himself. “Hydra will also ensure the protection of water bodies in and around Hyderabad,” former EVDM commissioner and Hydra chief A V Ranganath said during its inception.

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DRP News Bulletin

DRP 010724: Time for independent review of Polavaram Project?

July 1, 2024February 28, 2026 SANDRPLeave a comment

(Feature Image: Work going on Polavaram Project at Polavaram in West Godavari. DC Image: Narayana Rao, Dec. 2020)

The sequence of events over the last two decades that ended this week with white paper on Polavaram project being released by the newly elected Andhra Pradesh govt underlines urgent need for an independent assessment of the multi-state Polavaram Project on Godavari River in Andhra Pradesh.

The story of the project similar to, though a bit longer than that of the ill-fated Kaleshwaram Project of the neighbor Telugu speaking state of Telangana. Both are ill-conceived, expensive, high impact projects on same Godavari River, both taken forward without sufficient studies and implemented without sufficient checks and balances.

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DRP News Bulletin

DRP 181223: Varanasi’s illegal tent city inaugurated by Prime Minister in Jan 2023

December 18, 2023February 23, 2026 SANDRPLeave a comment

(Feature Image: Collage of Sentinel Hub satellite images of Tent City location in Ganga river bed in Varanasi from Nov. 26, 2022 to Dec. 11, 2023)

While the NGT putting a stay on the Varanasi Tent city and imposing a fine of Rs 25000 on MoEF for not responding to NGT about how the turtle sanctuary was denotified is welcome, we hope NGT takes it to its logical conclusion. It is strange, to say the least to see the NMCG telling NGT through its one page report dated Dec 13 2023 that the Varanasi Development Authority proposal dated Nov 28 2023 for tent city is under consideration! The Tent city companies were fined by NGT, but UP PCB is yet to do anything to collect the fine. Most interestingly, the Prime Minister, no less, inaugurated the tent city project on January 13 2023, over 11 months back! And very shockingly, none of the National Media is even reporting this remarkable situation.

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