Why are hydropower projects in the Himalayas risky?

• The Environment Ministry, in an affidavit placed in the Supreme Court earlier this month, has disclosed that it has permitted seven hydroelectric power projects, which are reportedly in advanced stages of construction, to go ahead.
• The seven projects are the Tehri Stage 2, Tapovan Vishnugadh (which was impacted by the February flood), Vishnugadh Pipalkoti, Singoli Bhatwari, Phata Bhuyang, Madhyamaheshwar and Kaliganga 2.
• One of them is the 512 MW Tapovan Vishnugadh project, in Joshimath, Uttarakhand which was damaged by a flood in February.
• Six months after a devastating flood of rock, ice and debris gushed down the Rishiganga river in Uttarakhand and killed at least 200 and severely damaged two hydropower projects, three Central Ministries, which initially had dissenting views on the future of hydroelectric power projects have agreed to a consensus.

Critical Analysis

• Environmental activists say that the water Ministry’s stand and the government’s pushing ahead with the project revealed that the floods of February had failed to jolt the government into realising that hydropower development in the fragile Himalayas was “illogical”.
• There were two projects, Singoli Bhatwari and Phata Bhuyang, which were specifically linked to the Kedarnath tragedy. Both have been allowed.
• The Vishnugadh project damaged in February floods too has been allowed to progress even though 200 plus people died due to the criminal negligence of their not being a disaster warning system.
• The affidavit has the government admitting that the floods have damaged the tunnels and topography of the projects. All of this has changed.

What’s the history of hydel projects in the Himalayas?

• In the aftermath of the Kedarnath floods of 2013 that killed at least 5,000 people, the Supreme Court halted the development of hydroelectric projects in Uttarakhand pending a review by the Environment Ministry on the role such projects had played in amplifying the disaster.
• A 17-member expert committee, led by environmentalist Ravi Chopra, was set up by the Ministry to examine the role of 24 such proposed hydroelectric projects in the Alaknanda and Bhagirathi basin, which has the Ganga and several tributaries.
• The Chopra committee concluded that 23 projects would have an “irreversible impact” on the ecology of the region.
• Following this, six private project developers, whose projects were among those recommended to be axed, impleaded themselves in the case on the ground that since their projects had already been cleared for construction before the Kedarnath tragedy, they should be allowed to continue.
• The SC directed a new committee to be set up to examine their case. This committee, led by Vinod Tare of the Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur, concluded that these projects could have a significant environmental impact.
• The Environment Ministry in 2015 set up yet another committee, led by B.P. Das, who was part of the original committee, but had filed a “dissenting report”. The Das committee recommended all six projects with design modifications to.
• The Water Resources Ministry, then led by Minister Uma Bharti, has been consistently opposed to hydropower projects in the Ganga.
• In charge of the National Mission for Clean Ganga, the Water Ministry has maintained that the cleanliness of the river was premised on minimum levels of water flow in all seasons and the proposed projects could hinder this. By 2019, however, the renamed Jal Shakti Ministry had changed its stance to accommodate seven out of the 24 projects. Its current position is that barring these, it is “not in favour” of new projects in the Ganga river basin.
• Though hearings in the Supreme Court are ongoing, this is the first time that the government has a formal uniform position on hydropower projects in the Uttarakhand region.

What are the challenges such projects face?

• Following the break in the Raunthi glacier that triggered floods in the Rishiganga river in Uttarakhand on February 7, which washed away at least two hydroelectric power projects — the the13.2 MW Rishiganga hydroelectric power project and the Tapovan project, environmental experts have attributed the glacial melt to global warming.
• Glacier retreat and permafrost thaw are projected to decrease the stability of mountain slopes and increase the number and area of glacier lakes.
• Moreover, with increased instances of cloudbursts, and intense spells of rainfall and avalanches, residents of the region were also placed at increased risk of loss of lives and livelihood.

How can these conflicts be resolved?

• The challenges facing development in the Himalayan region are multi-faceted. The Uttarakhand government has said that it’s paying over? 1,000 crore annually to purchase electricity and therefore, the more such projects are cancelled, the harder for them to meet their development obligations.
• Several environmentalists and residents of the region say that the proposed projects being built by private companies allot only a limited percentage of their produced power for the State of Uttarakhand itself.
• Thus the State, on its own, takes on massive environmental risk without being adequately compensated for it or its unique challenges accounted for.
• Though the Centre is committed to hydropower projects because it’s a renewable source of power, the ecological damage combined with the reduced cost of solar power means that it has in recent times said that it is not in favour of greenfield hydropower projects in the region.
• But several environmental activists say that the Centre will continue to prioritise infrastructural development in the region, even if it comes at a heavy environmental cost.

One Nation One Ration Card (ONORC)

About ONORC

• The One Nation One Ration Card (ONORC) is an ambitious plan and endeavour of the Department to ensure seamless delivery of subsidised food-security entitlements to all beneficiaries covered under the National Food Security Act, 2013 (NFSA), irrespective of their physical location anywhere in the country.
• The objective of this programme is to empower all NFSA beneficiaries to be self-reliant for their food security anywhere in the country, through the portability of their same existing ration cards to seamlessly lift their subsidized foodgrains (in part or full) from any ePoS (electronic Point of Sale device) enabled Fair Price Shop in the country with biometric/Aadhaar authentication at the time of lifting the foodgrains through portability. Further, their family members back home can also lift the balance/their requirement of foodgrains on the same ration card.
• Further, due to the potential of ONORC to empower migrants, this plan has now also become a part of the “Prime Minister’s Technology Driven System Reforms under the AtmaNirbhar Bharat Abhiyan”.
• While taking the PDS reforms under End-to-End Computerization of TPDS Operations in the country to the next level, the Department of Food and Public Distribution started the implementation of a technology-driven reform for the nationwide portability of ration cards under NFSA as an integral part of a Central Sector Scheme, namely, ‘Integrated Management of Public Distribution System (IM-PDS)’ from April 2018. This scheme is being implemented with a total outlay of Rs. 127.30 Crore and presently, the validity of this scheme has been extended by the Standing Finance Committee (SFC) up to 31.03.2022 without escalation in the total project cost.
• Although the facility of ONORC shall equally benefit about all 80 Crore NFSA beneficiaries in the country to lift their foodgrains from any FPS of choice, it primarily aims to enable migratory NFSA beneficiaries (mostly labourers, daily-wagers, urban poor like rag-pickers, street-dwellers, temporary workers in organised and unorganised sectors, domestic workers, etc.) who frequently migrate across the country in search of better opportunities or for any other reasons, to access the Public Distribution System (PDS) and if desire, may lift their entitled foodgrains from any ePoS enabled FPS in the country through portability.
• Thus, installation of ePoS devices at the FPSs and Aadhaar seeding of beneficiaries with their digitised ration card data are the two main enablers of this technology driven initiative.
• With respect to publicity and awareness of this high impact programme, the responsibility has been entrusted to the respective State/UT Government, as under TPDS the responsibilities of identification of beneficiaries and distribution of foodgrains to them rest with the States/UTs.
• Besides the above, the Department is also making efforts for the promotion, beneficiary outreach and awareness generation of ONORC from time to time. The Department is regularly coordinating with other relevant Ministries/Departments such as MoIB, MoLE, MoHUA, Railways and some other agencies for strategic outreach to beneficiaries and publicity campaigning of the initiative.
• Various Information, Education and Communication (IEC) material in different languages have been developed by the Department with the support of MyGov (MeitY) and other relevant agencies and have shared with States/UTs for use on outdoor/physical and digital publicity mediums, social media, and Government websites/portals/etc.
• The ONORC is also a part of the PM-SVANidhi program of the MoHUA.

Mera Ration App

• Since its launch on March 12th 2021, the ‘Mera Ration’ app has recorded over 15 lakh downloads on Google Play Store. The app was launched under One Nation One Ration Card (ONORC) plan to benefit National Food Security Act (NFSA) beneficiaries, particularly migrant beneficiaries to avail maximum benefit of ration cards portability.
• The App has been developed by the Department in technical association with Central NIC Unit - providing a host of useful TPDS/ONORC information and features.
• To facilitate better access and maximum benefit, the app is available in 12 languages viz. English, Hindi, Oriya, Punjabi, Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, Kannada, Urdu, Gujarati, Marathi and Bangla.
• The App provides the following main features/services to the beneficiaries:

• Beside promoting the app from the central level, all States/UTs have also been requested to undertake wide-spread publicity and awareness of this Mobile App– which is envisaged to give a boost to the portability transactions under ONORC, as this application is very useful for the migrant NFSA beneficiaries to easily know their entitlement details, recent transactions details, check Aadhaar seeding status and eligibility for national portability besides doing a voluntary registration for ONORC as well.
• Through the feature of locating nearby Fair Price Shop, the migrant beneficiary can easily find shops in the new area and follow the map to reach the closest fair price shop to avail foodgrain benefits.

Hydroelectric power in India

What is Hydroelectric power?

• Hydroelectric power is electricity produced from generators driven by turbines that convert the potential energy of falling water into mechanical energy.

• India overtook Japan in 2019 as the fifth largest world hydropower producer by capacity which currently is 50 GW. Only China, Brazil, the US and Canada have a greater hydropower capacity globally.
• The country has 197 hydropower plants capable of producing more than 25 megawatts (MW), according to the International Hydropower Association (IHA), plus nine pumped storage stations accounting for 4,786MW capacity.
• As of 31 March 2020, India's installed utility-scale hydroelectric capacity was 46,000 MW or 12.3% of its total utility power generation capacity. The public sector accounts for 92.5% of India's hydroelectric power production.
• Additional smaller hydroelectric power units with a total capacity of 4,683 MW (1.3% of its total utility power generation capacity) have been installed.
• India also imports surplus hydroelectric power from Bhutan.
• Indian companies have also constructed hydropower projects in Bhutan, Nepal, Afghanistan, and other countries.
• India is the world's third-largest producer and the third-largest consumer of electricity. The national electric grid in India has an installed capacity of 383.37 GW as of 31 May 2021. Renewable power plants, which also include large hydroelectric plants, constitute 37% of India's total installed capacity.
• Companies engaged in the development of hydroelectric power in India include the National Hydroelectric Power Corporation (NHPC), Northeast Electric Power Company (NEEPCO), Satluj Jal Vidyut Nigam (SJVNL), Tehri Hydro Development Corporation, and NTPC-Hydro.
• With a population of well over a billion people and a fast-growing economy, India’s electricity demand is expected to double over the next decade.

Advantages of Hydropower

• A renewable source of energy - saves scarce fuel reserves.
• Non-polluting and hence environment friendly.
• Long life - The first hydro project completed in 1897 is still in operation at Darjeeling is still in operation.
• The cost of generation, operation and maintenance is lower than the other sources of energy.
• Hydropower is clean and cheap in long run. It has features like quick ramping, black start and reactive absorption — required for ideal peaking power or spinning reserve.
• The ability to start and stop quickly and instantaneous load acceptance/rejection makes it suitable to meet peak demand and for enhancing system reliability and stability.
• Has higher efficiency (over 90%) compared to thermal (35%) and gas (around 50%).
• The cost of generation is free from inflationary effects after the initial installation.
• Storage-based hydro schemes often provide attendant benefits of irrigation, flood control, drinking water supply, navigation, recreation, tourism, pisciculture etc.
• Being located in remote regions leads to the development of interior backward areas (education, medical, road communication, telecommunication etc.)

Classification of Hydropower projects:

• Hydropower projects are classified as large and small hydro projects based on their sizes.

1) Large Hydropower – Ministry of Power

• India has an estimated hydropower potential of 1,45,320 MW, excluding small hydro projects (SHPs) which have 20 GW potential.
• Several hydroelectric projects (HEPs) in India are languishing due to contractual conflicts, environmental litigations, local disturbances, financial stress and unwilling purchasers.
• Only about 10,000 MW of hydropower could be added over the last 10 years.
• India has close to 100 hydropower plants above 25 MW, plus nine pumped storage stations. In 2019, it surpassed Japan to become the fifth largest in the world for potential hydropower capacity, surpassing 50 GW.

2) Small Hydropower - Ministry of New and renewable energy (MNRE)

• India has a history of about 120 years of hydropower.
• In India, hydropower plants of 25MW or below capacity are classified as small hydro and comes under the purview of the Ministry of New and renewable energy (MNRE).
• The first small hydro project of 130 kW commissioned in the hills of Darjeeling in 1897 marked the development of hydropower in India.
• The Sivasamudram project of 4500 kW was the next to come up in the Mysore district of Karnataka in 1902, for the supply of power to the Kolar gold mines.
• Following this, there were a number of small hydro projects set up in various hilly areas of the country.
• Till Independence (1947), the country had an installed capacity of 1362 MW, which included 508 MW hydropower projects, mainly small and medium. As per MNRE, the estimated potential of a small hydropower plants is 20 GW across the country.
• Depending upon the capacity of the project, a Small hydro Project can be classified as below:

1. Micro (up to 100 kW)
2. Mini (101 kW to 2 MW)
3. Small Hydro (2 MW to 25 MW)

• Hydro Power was being looked after by Ministry of Power prior to 1989 mainly with the help of State Electricity Boards.
• In 1989, plant capacity up to 3MW and below was transferred to the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) and as such 63 MW aggregate installed capacity of 3MW and below hydro projects came within the jurisdiction of MNRE.
• Subsequently, plant capacity up to 25MW and below was entrusted with the MNRE in November 1999.

Hydroelectric Potential in India

• Hydropower potential is located mainly in northern and northeastern regions.
• Arunachal Pradesh has the largest unexploited hydropower potential of 47 GW, followed by Uttarakhand with 12 GW.
• The unexploited potential is mainly along three river systems — the Indus, Ganges and Brahmaputra (see Chart). India has several international issues across these river systems. Like electricity, hydropower should also be brought on the concurrent list to formulate uniform policies and processes for faster development.
• India has over 90 GW of pumped storage potential, with 63 sites identified and recognised in national energy policies for their valuable grid services.
• India has an estimated hydropower potential of 1,45,320 MW, excluding small hydro projects (SHPs) which has 20 GW potential.
• The estimated potential of Small Hydropwer of 21135.37 MW from 7135 sites for power generation in the country from small / mini hydel projects is assessed by the Alternate Hydro Energy Centre (AHEC) of IIT Roorkee in its Small Hydro Database of July 2016.
• The hilly States of India mainly Arunachal Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir and Uttarakhand, and constitute around half of this potential. Other potential States are Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, Karnataka and Kerala.
• India ranks as the fourth country in the world by undeveloped hydropower potential, after Russia, China and Canada, and fifth by total potential, surpassed also by Brazil.
• The basin-wise assessed potential is as under:-

Issues in Hydropower generation

• In central India, the hydroelectric power potential from the Godavari, Mahanadi, Nagavali, Vamsadhara and Narmada river basins has not been developed on a major scale due to potential opposition from the tribal population.
• Hydropower’s share in the electricity mix has, however, been decreasing over the years, accounting for around 10 per cent of generation, with the majority (80 per cent) coming from thermal generation.
• Many current hydropower projects have been slow going with delays due to complex planning procedures, prolonged land acquisition and resettlement, a lack of enabling infrastructure including transmission, insufficient market scope and long-term financing.
• Several hydroelectric projects (HEPs) in India are languishing due to contractual conflicts, environmental litigations, local disturbances, financial stress and unwilling purchasers.
• Only about 10,000 MW of hydropower could be added over the last 10 years.
• As water and water power are State subjects, the construction of HEPs is often delayed due to conflicts among riparian States — the Subansiri HEP is a prime example of this.

Solutions for Hydropower

• India is committed to having 40 per cent of its installed capacity from non-fossil fuel sources by 2030, and is pursuing a renewable target of 175 GW by 2022 and 450 GW by 2030. Therefore, hydropower is highly relevant for grid integration of renewable energy and for balancing infirmities.
• Significant reforms made in recent years include the 2008 Hydro Power Policy encouraging private sector participation and the 2016 National Tariff Policy on frequency response markets and extended certainty of power purchase agreements.
• The Central Electricity Authority (CEA) and the Ministry of Power have also been actively monitoring and fast-tracking priority schemes, notably the 50,000 MW Hydro Electric Initiative.
• The government formally recognised large hydropower as renewable in 2019. This means that these projects built after March that year will be able to benefit from the renewable purchase obligation. Previously only projects up to 25 MW were considered renewable.
• Policy proposals mooted by observers include new ancillary service markets, attributing hydropower full renewable status along with separate purchase obligation benefits, and more integrated planning.
• Draft policies under preparation are expected to support stalled hydropower projects and private sector uptake and could include measures to make hydropower tariffs more competitive.
• In 2020, the country’s hydropower sector was heralded for restoring electricity to tens of millions following a huge plunge in demand.
• In 2019, the Teesta-V hydropower station in Sikkim was rated as an example of international good practice in hydropower sustainability, following an independent assessment.
• Courtesy the Draft Electricity (Amendment) Bill 2020, hydropower purchase obligation (HPO) may appear to become a reality soon.

Way Forward

However, a better option is re-engineering of the power market to treat hydropower as a peaking and grid-balancing power, and also to distribute its higher tariff over the entire energy consumption on a prorate basis.