Temporary relief as plan for Etalin hydel in Arunachal junked

Temporary relief as plan for Etalin hydel in Arunachal junked

Subject :Geography

Section: Hydrology

Context:

• The proposed Etalin hydroelectric project in Arunachal Pradesh has been scrapped in its present form because of the environmental threats due to the plant in a biodiversity hotspot.

Details:

1. The South Asia Network on Dams, Rivers and People (SANDRP) had written to the Expert Appraisal Committee (EAC) detailing geological and seismic risks and threats to biodiversity in 2015– when appraisals to grant environmental clearance (EC) to the project were underway.

About Etalin hydel project:

• 3,097-megawatt Etalin Hydroelectric Project (EHEP)
• Developed by joint venture between Jindal Power Ltd and the Hydropower Development Corporation of Arunachal Pradesh Ltd.
• The plan combined two run-of-the-river schemes with limited storage requiring concrete gravity dams on rivers Tangon and Dri.
• The hydroelectric project will require the diversion of 1,165.66 hectares of forest land and the felling of more than 280,000 trees in the area.

Other Hydroelectric power projects in North East region of India: