DRP 080925: Will the higher judiciary Listen?

September 8, 2025 SANDRPLeave a comment

(Feature Image: Seraj valley in Mandi district of Himachal battered by extreme weather events in July 2025)

Well known environmentalist Manshi Asher through the following article is giving a very important message that everyone, particularly Judiciary needs to listen and act upon. While higher judiciary is rightly highly respected, its track record on acting on environmental issues is far from satisfactory and leaves a lot to be desired.

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Dam Induced Flood Disaster · Dam Safety · Dams, Rivers & People · Indus

DRP 010925: Punjab floods need independent inquiry

September 1, 2025 SANDRPLeave a comment

(Feature Image: Punjab WRD minister Barinder Kumar Goyal asserted that the timely release of water by the BBMB in June could have significantly reduced the damage caused by the floods.)

It is clear from the following details that the massive floods that Punjab experienced and parts continue to experience even now has a lot to do with the way Bhakra, Pong and Ranjit Sagar dams were operated. There was sufficient actionable information that was available to take advance water release action. Had these actions been taken, the proportions of the disaster could have been reduced. The risk of further floods remains considering the IMD forecast of heavy rains in catchments of these dams during the remaining weeks of SW Monsoon 2025.

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Dam Induced Flood Disaster · Floods

DRP 250825: Threat of Dam Floods continue to be ignored

August 25, 2025December 5, 2025 SANDRP2 Comments

(Feature Image: The release of water from Pong Dam has brought devastation to Mand Bhograwan village in Kangra district, where the sudden rise in the Beas river has submerged several acres of fertile land and put houses at risk. Aug 17.)

Sudden release of large quantity of water from the dams has the potential of creating avoidable floods in the downstream areas as we could see last week in case of Ukai Dam water releases affecting Surat in South Gujarat, Ujani and Jayakwadi dam water releases in Maharashtra, Bhakra and Pong dam releases in Punjab and Himachal Pradesh, among others. In all these cases, we can show that earlier water release was warranted based on available information, considering the carrying capacity of the downstream river, but such action was delayed till either the dam was full before water started (e.g. Ujani and Jayakwadi) or too large water releases created avoidable flood impacts in case of Ukai Dam on Tapi River in South Gujarat and also in case of Bhakra and Pong dams. There were also extensive damages in Mirzapur and Chandauli districts of Uttar Pradesh due to sudden release of water from a number of dams including Chandra Prabha Dam, Ahraura dam and Jargo Dam among others.

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Climate Change · Dams · Hydro Power Projects · Rivers

DRP 18 Aug2025: Sustainable Hydropower an Oxymoron?

August 18, 2025 SANDRP1 Comment

Analyzing a recent paper authored by 37 persons mainly from academics and hydropower related companies on “Sustainable Hydropower”, Eugene Simonov shows why the phrase is an oxymoron, a contradiction in terms. The paper fails to even refer to the most important work on hydropower projects, the report of the World Commission on Dams.

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Climate Change · Dams · Rivers

DRP 040825: Arunachal Activists urge Centre to find dimensions of China’s Medog Dam

August 4, 2025August 4, 2025 SANDRPLeave a comment

(Feature Image: Aerial view of the Yarlung Tsangpo’s Great Bend, Medog County)

Arunachal and other Himalayan states activists in a press conference in Delhi have rightly urged the Union Government to publicly demand from China all the features and dimensions of the Medog Dam on Yarlung Tsangpo river, their impact assessments and share the same promptly in public domain before even considering any project like the Siang Upper Multipurpose Project (SUMP). This is important since without knowing the features, dimensions, operating procedures and impact assessments, all the projections being made about the possible impacts of the projects are completely speculative and unfounded.

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Climate Change · Disasters · GLOF · Hydro Power Projects · Rivers

DRP 280725: CWC Guidelines on GLOF should have mandated all information in public domain, independent assessment after every GLOF

July 28, 2025July 28, 2025 SANDRPLeave a comment

Guidelines for Structural Measures to Mitigate Adverse Effects of GLOF on Dams Central Water Commission (CWC) on July 23 has issued new guidelines to safeguard dam infrastructure from risks and threat of flash floods triggered by glacial lake outburst floods (GLOFs). The information about this 40 paged documents named Guidelines for Structural Measures to Mitigate Adverse Effects of GLOF on Dams July 2025 was shared by CWC director Shiv Kumar Sharma, in a LinkedIn post. The document is available in PPT format and a pdf link for the same is still not available.

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Climate Change · Dams · Disasters · Floods · Rivers

DRP 210725: Moving Joshimath Landslide a threat to Tapovan Vishnugad HEP in UKD?

July 21, 2025July 21, 2025 SANDRP1 Comment

(Feature Image: Hydropower Tunnel project shown in the Joshimath area along with the Watershed Boundary. This figure is generated using ArcGIS software-version 10.3.1 and CorelDraw Graphics Suite 2019 https://www.coreldraw.com/. Source: Analyzing Joshimath’s sinking: causes, consequences, and future prospects with remote sensing techniques. May 2024)

A paper in scientific journal co-authored by Internationally renowned landslide expert Dave Petley (published on June 16 2025 at: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.enggeo.2025.108201) warns that the Joshimath landslide is moving and can threaten the under construction Tapovan Vishnugad hydropower project in Chamoli district in Uttarkhand. The paper says: “The 2023 rapid deformation at Joshimath was preceded by slow movement years ahead. Deforestation in the Joshimath region might have intensified the slope instability. Additional landslide zones were detected in Hailang, Kalpeshwar with similar pattern. Slow-moving landslides have high potential to cause often underestimated damages.”

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Climate Change · Dam Decommissioning · Floods · River Restoration

DRP 140725: Dam decommissioning spreads to China

July 14, 2025 SANDRP2 Comments

(Feature Image: Copco 2 dam removal on the Klamath River, California. Credit: Swiftwater Films, Source: American Rivers)

China decommissions hundreds of dams along Red river China has claimed to have dismantled 300 dams and decommissioned more than 90 percent of small hydropower stations along the Chishui River, also known as the Red River, a key tributary of the upper Yangtze. The move is seen as one of the largest state-led efforts to restore aquatic biodiversity in Asia’s longest river, reversing decades of hydro-infrastructure development that critically endangered native fish species, including the Yangtze sturgeon, the South China Morning Post reported.

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Environmental Flow · floodplains · Floods · River Pollution · Yamuna River

Yamuna Manthan July 2025: Is Delhi Ready for July 2023 like Yamuna Floods?

July 11, 2025 SANDRPLeave a comment

(Feature Image: EOS-RS Flood Proxy Map: New Delhi, Floods, 12 July 2023,v0.4)

July 13 will mark two years since the Yamuna river stretch in national capital witnessed unprecedented flood spell. The river not just submerged every part of existing available floodplain by several feet but also spilled over to reclaim its lost channels. The unusual flood also breached historic 1978 flood level at Delhi railway bridge by a huge margin, setting new benchmark.

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Climate Change · Dams · Hydro Power Projects · Rivers

DRP 070725: Demand for Commission of Inquiry on Hydro Obsession in Himachal

July 7, 2025July 7, 2025 SANDRPLeave a comment

(Feature Image: Flood ravaged Priyadarshini HEP in Manuni khad in Dharamshala, Kangra. Source: Social Media)

Hydropower obsession, Himalayan failure The massive hydropower push, another legacy of post-1990s liberalisation, has amplified vulnerability. Dams have mushroomed across river basins in Kinnaur, Lahaul-Spiti, Chamba, and Kullu — with scant regard for ecological thresholds. Muck from these construction sites is routinely dumped into riverbeds, narrowing channels and raising riverbeds. When the rains arrive, this loose muck turns into a lethal force, taking down everything in its path. The hydropower model — built on the assumption of perpetual revenue — has neither delivered long-term employment nor sustainable energy. Instead, it has left behind ecological scars, displaced communities, and made vast swathes of the state more disaster-prone.

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