New Delhi: India has initiated work on two major infrastructure projects linked to the Chenab river system in a move being viewed as strategically significant amid the current freeze in the Indus Waters Treaty framework.
The projects, together worth nearly Rs 2,600 crore, are being undertaken by National Hydroelectric Power Corporation and focus on improving hydroelectric efficiency, water management and river utilisation on the western river system governed under the Indus Waters Treaty.
The larger of the two projects is the Rs 2,352 crore Chenab Beas Link Tunnel Project in Himachal Pradesh’s Lahaul Spiti region. The proposal includes construction of an 8.7 kilometre tunnel aimed at diverting surplus water from the Chenab basin into the Beas river system through a wider inter basin river linking network.
Officials said the project would transfer water from the Chandra river, a tributary of the Chenab, towards the Beas basin using tunnels and hydraulic structures. A 19 metre high barrage is also planned in the Lahaul valley during the first phase of construction.
The project site is located in the strategically important Himalayan belt near Koskar village, upstream of the north portal of the Atal Tunnel. Authorities believe the initiative will strengthen northern India’s hydroelectric potential while improving long term water utilisation from the western rivers.
Alongside the Himachal project, NHPC has also begun work on a Rs 268 crore diversion and sediment bypass tunnel at the Salal hydroelectric project in Jammu and Kashmir. The intervention aims to tackle decades old siltation problems that have reduced the reservoir’s storage capacity and affected turbine efficiency.
The new bypass tunnel will help flush accumulated sediment from the reservoir while improving water flow management and operational flexibility at the dam.
The timing of both projects has drawn attention because they come after India placed the Indus Waters Treaty “in abeyance” following the Pahalgam terror attack. While officials maintain the projects are within India’s treaty rights and focused on infrastructure modernisation, experts believe they signal a broader push towards maximising hydroelectric generation and water management capacity on the western rivers.
