New Delhi: India on Friday (January 3) stated that it had conveyed its concerns about mega projects following China’s announcement of its plans to build the world’s largest dam on the Yarlung Zangbo River, which flows downstream into Indian territory as the Brahmaputra River.
Last week, Chinese state news agency Xinhua reported that Beijing had recently “approved the construction of a hydropower project in the lower reaches of the Yarlung Zangbo River”.
Chinese embassy spokesperson Yu Jin said on December 27 that the project, “in [the] lower reaches of [the] Yarlung Zangbo River” is aimed at low-carbon development.
“It is also a safe project that prioritises ecological [protection], she added.
The Indian government clearly did not agree with this assessment, with the foreign office reiterating its traditional concern after the announcement of the new project.
“As a lower riparian state with established user rights to the waters of the river, we have consistently expressed, through expert-level as well as diplomatic channels, our views and concerns to the Chinese side over mega projects on rivers in their territory,” said Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal on Friday at the weekly media briefing.
He continued: “These have been reiterated, along with [the] need for transparency and consultation with downstream countries, following the latest report.”
Jaiswal also emphasised that China had been “urged to ensure that the interests of [the] downstream states of the Brahmaputra are not harmed by activities in upstream areas.”
“We will continue to monitor and take necessary measures to protect our interests,” he added.
The Chinese mega hydropower project made news around the world as it was cited as the largest infrastructure project in the world due to its estimated cost of about $137 billion.
India and China had an institutionalised expert-level mechanism to address issues related to trans-border rivers. However, these discussions were suspended following the military standoff in eastern Ladakh, which began in May 2020 and ended in December 2024.
At the first meeting of the special representatives in Beijing after the resolution of the standoff, the agenda included the resumption of “data sharing on trans-border rivers”.
Indian government records dating to more than three years ago highlight that Tibet has been the site of numerous hydropower projects over the past decade, with the latest mega project proposed under China’s 14th Five-Year Plan.
In July 2021, the MEA informed parliament that a hydropower project in Tibet had been declared fully operational in October 2015. Under China’s 12th Five-Year Plan (2011–2015), three additional hydropower projects were planned on the main stream of the Brahmaputra River in the the Tibet Autonomous Region, with the first unit of one such project becoming operational in August 2020.
“Further, in March 2021, China adopted its 14th Five-Year Plan, which includes plans for hydropower development on the lower reaches of the Brahmaputra River,” said then-junior minister of external affairs V. Muraleedharan.
Addressing India’s position on these developments, the minister stated, “As a lower riparian state, with considerable established user rights to the waters of the trans-border rivers, government have consistently conveyed our views and concerns to the Chinese authorities.”
“Government have urged them to ensure that the interests of downstream states are not harmed by any activities in upstream areas. The Chinese side has conveyed to us on several occasions that they are only undertaking run-of-the-river hydropower projects, which do not involve diversion of the waters of the Brahmaputra,” the MEA informed parliament.
Run-of-the-river projects generally do not pose significant challenges for downstream countries as they allow uninterrupted water flow. However, projects involving water storage or diversion could raise concerns about reduced river flow downstream.
In addition to concerns over the dam project, the MEA spokesperson disclosed that India has protested against China’s establishment of two new counties in the Hotan Prefecture, parts of which fall within Aksai Chin, an area claimed by India.
“We have seen the announcement regarding the establishment of two new counties in Hotan Prefecture of China. Parts of the jurisdiction of these so-called counties fall within India’s Union territory of Ladakh,” said Jaiswal.
He emphasised that India has never recognised “China’s illegal occupation of Indian territory in this region”.
“The creation of new counties will neither impact India’s longstanding and consistent position regarding our sovereignty over the area nor confer legitimacy to China’s illegal and forcible occupation. We have lodged a formal protest with the Chinese side through diplomatic channels,” the MEA spokesperson stated.
