Sept. 2026: NHPC’s Parbati-II HEP Tunnel Leakage in Himachal Pradesh

September 23, 2026September 23, 2026 SANDRPLeave a comment

(Feature Image: A damaged house in Palchara village by debris flood after a leak in the Parbati II HEP tunnel on Sept. 19, 2026 in Sainj Valley. Source: The Tribune)

The Sept. 2026 tunnel leakage at NHPC’s Parbati-II HEP in Kullu’s Sainj Valley triggered a sudden flow of water, muck and debris towards Palchara village. Although there was no loss of life, the incident has damaged houses, agricultural land and local infrastructure. It occurred amid a series of leakage and seepage incidents reported in and around the project in recent years, raising renewed concerns over tunnel safety, muck dumping and slope stability in the project area.

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Beas · Himalayas · Landslide dam

July 2026: Flood Threat from Landslide Lake in Sainj Valley, Himachal Pradesh

August 1, 2026 SANDRPLeave a comment

(Feature Image: Google Earth image marks locations mentioned in the report along landslide lakes and nearby hydropower infrastructure in the Sainj Valley. The red circle marks the probable location of the landslide lake on Jiva nullah, while the yellow circle indicates the landslide lake that formed on Varshanu nullah in June 2025. The numbered locations represent: (1) 1 MW Jiva Small HEP, (2) 100 MW Sainj HEP powerhouse, (3) 800 MW Parbati-II HEP powerhouse and (4) the dam of the 520 MW Parbati-III HEP.)

Fresh landslides and the continued expansion of a landslide-dammed lake on Jiva nullah in the Sainj Valley of Kullu district, Himachal Pradesh, have once again raised concerns over a potential downstream flood disaster. Although no official estimate of the lake’s area or stored water volume has been made public, local residents say the impounded water body has expanded steadily over the past three years.

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Himalayas · Hydro Disaster · Teesta

July 2026: 25 Workers Killed in NHPC Teesta-VI HEP Tunnel Disaster in Sikkim

July 24, 2026 SANDRPLeave a comment

(Feature Image: Joint rescue and recovery operation at Teesta VI HEP tunnel site in Samardung, Sikkim: Image credit: PTI/Source: ETV Bharat)

The methane leak and explosion disaster on 20 July 2026 inside the under-construction ADIT-III tunnel of NHPC’s 500 MW Teesta Stage-VI Hydroelectric Project (HEP) at Samardung in South Sikkim claimed the lives of all 25 trapped workers, making it one of the worst tunnel accidents in India’s hydropower sector.

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Climate Change · Himalayas · Hydro Disaster · Sutlej

July 2026: Recurring Artificial Lake Floods Lippa in Sutlej Basin

July 22, 2026July 22, 2026 SANDRPLeave a comment

(Feature Image: Google Earth image showing Lippa village, Pejar and Kerang streams and location of artificial lake in red circle.)

A flash flood triggered by heavy rainfall on 9 July 2026 created an artificial lake in Lippa village under Pooh subdivision of Kinnaur district, Himachal Pradesh. The deluge originated in the Pejar (Pager) nallah, which carried huge amount of boulders, debris and slush into the Kerang stream (Teti khad) blocking its natural flow. The obstruction caused water to accumulate rapidly, creating an artificial lake at the confluence of Pejar and Kerang stream.

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Chenab · Climate Change · Hydro Disaster

July 2026: Flash Flood Disaster at Kwar HEP Site in Chenab Valley, J&K

July 8, 2026July 8, 2026 SANDRPLeave a comment

(Feature Image: Screenshots from Akashvani News Jammu video showing flash flood imapct at Kwar HEP site on July 06, 2026.)

A major flash flood and landslide on July 06, 2026 affected the Kwar Hydroelectric Project (HEP) near Padhyarna in Kishtwar district of Jammu and Kashmir. The disaster occurred in the early morning hours following intense overnight rainfall.

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Dams, Rivers & People

DRP 060726: India needs to improve Rainfall Monitoring?

July 6, 2026July 6, 2026 SANDRPLeave a comment

(Feature Image: A manual rain guage in Syunsal village of Pauri district, Uttarakhand. Bhim Singh Rawat/SANDRP)

Two reports from Karnataka this week highlight that over half of the 6605 rain gauges in Karnataka are non-functional. Earlier we saw that IMD does not even report rainfall for at least 11 districts in Arunachal Pradesh alone, possibly since it does not have adequate number of rain gauges in those newly formed districts of Arunachal Pradesh. IMD’s Annual Report for 2025 says P 59): “IMD operates 1,008 Automatic Weather Stations (AWS), 1,382 Automatic Rain Gauge (ARG) stations, 200 Agro-AWS, 5 Automatic Snow Gauge (ASG) stations”. That comes to 2395 locations where rain or snow is measured by IMD, going by the Annual Report. IMD apparently uses rainfall data from other agencies, but their number is not given in the report. IMD also has a large number of manual rain gauges, but the IMD Annual Report does not provide those numbers.

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CWC - Central Water Commission · Floods · Himalayas · Hydro Disaster · Monsoon

June 2026: Flash Flood Disaster at NEEPCO’s HEP Site in Arunachal Pradesh

June 25, 2026August 14, 2026 SANDRPLeave a comment

(Feature Image: Scren grab of flash flood passing through NEEPCO 43 Colony at PLHEP site in mornng hour of June 24, 2026. Source: Pratidin Time news)

A severe flash flood spell in the Poosa–Yazali area of Keyi Panyor district, Arunachal Pradesh on June 24, 2026, has significantly affected NEEPCO’s 43 colony located near the Panyor Lower Hydroelectric Project (PLHEP) site, close to the reservoir of the HEP. The disaster occurred around 6 in the morning, heavy spell creating a cloud burst like situation.

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Beas · Climate Change · Dams · Disasters · Himalayas · Hydro Disaster

Himachal Pradesh: Sainj HEP Remains Out of Operation for over 4 months

November 16, 2025November 16, 2025 SANDRPLeave a comment

(Feature Image: Outlet of Sainj HEP powerhouse tunnel buried under silt in last week of June 2025. Source: Hariram Chaudhary, Sainj)

The Sainj Hydroelectric Project (HEP) in Kullu district of Himachal Pradesh has been out of operation for over the past four months. The 100 Mw project of the Himachal Pradesh Power Corporation Limited (HPPCL) is the fourth HEP which was severely affected by flash flood in Jiwa nullah on June 25, 2025.

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Beas · Climate Change · Himalayas · Small Hydro

Himachal Pradesh: Kullu Villagers Demand Suspension of Sarbari-I SHEP

October 10, 2025 SANDRPLeave a comment

Blaming Sarbari I Small Hydro Power (HEP) project for causing reoccurring disasters, the villagers of Mashana panchayat in Lag Valley of Kullu district have demanded suspension of the 4.5 Mw project operation. As per the villagers the leakages in the surge shaft and head race tunnel and burst of penstock of the project in August and Sept. months this year have caused landslides and flash flood disasters impacting their land and livelihoods. They have said that due to these disasters about 80 meter Mashana link road, some houses, a water tank and over hundreds of bigha of fertile farmland have been severely damaged.

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Climate Change · Himalayas · Hydro Power Projects · Sutlej

Lippa Villagers Blame Kashang HEP for Artificial Lake in Sutlej Basin

September 29, 2025 SANDRPLeave a comment

(Feature Image: Sept. 07, 2025 pics showingg houses submerged in artificial lake in Lippa village)

It has been over three weeks since an artificial lake formed in Lippa village under Pooh division of Kinnaur district in Himachal Pradesh has not been breached fully. The lake was formed after flashflood in Pajer nullah in Sutlej river basin on Sept 4, 2025 which blocked the flow of Kerang stream. Subsequently, first floors of about 5 homes were submerged in the lake water. The deluge also damaged 5 irrigation channels, 2 potable water sources & several apple plants.

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