Bad news for India, as China begins construction of world’s biggest dam over Brahmaputra near...

China has started the construction of world's largest dams on the Brahmaputra River in Nyingchi in southeastern Tibet, only a few kilometers from the Indian border in Arunachal Pradesh. This 167 billion USD mega dam project was inaugurated by Chinese Premier Li Qiang on Saturday, July 19.

The dam is being built on the Yarlung Tsangpo River, known as Brahmaputra in India. It will include five large hydropower stations, and is expected to produce 60,000 megawatts of electricity. This massive hydropower generation is three times more than China's famous Three Gorges Dam. The cost of this dam project is estimated around 167 billion USD and is China's biggest ever infrastructure plan. 

Bad news for India?

The biggest concern of India is that China is constructing the dams over Brahmaputra river, a lifeline for India's northeast. The river is extremely crucial for Assam, and even for Bangladesh. Moreover, the construction of the dam is also very close to Indian border of Arunachal Pradesh. China would have 'upper hand' on controlling the river flow, as it is an upper riparian country. It can attempt to hinder the water flow into India, giving it a strategic advantage.

As per reports, India has raised concerns on this construction, saying, it will 'monitor and take necessary measures to protect our interests'. They have urged China to not harm interest of downstream states. India's foreign ministry said, 'China has been urged to ensure that the interests of the downstream states of the Brahmaputra are not harmed by activities in upstream areas'.

In response, China has assured that this construction would not have any negative impact on the downstream and will continue to communicate with countries at the downstream. However, India and China do not have any 'legally binding' water treaty in effect, like India and Pakistan's Indus Water Treaty (1960), raising further concerns. 

The environmentalists are also concerned with this dam project of China over 'seismically active zone', which is prone to earthquake. This large construction can have a negative geopolitical impact, hindering natural flow of sediments important for Agriculture in Assam and Bangladesh.