China assures Brahmaputra Dam in Tibet will have ‘no negative impact on lower reaches’
- Earlier on Wednesday, China approved the construction of the world's largest dam on the Brahmaputra River in Tibet, which triggered apprehensions among the governments in India and Bangladesh.
The Chinese foreign ministry defended its decision to give a green signal for the world's largest dam on the Brahmaputra river in Tibet, despite India and Bangladesh expressing their reservations, reported Times of India on Friday.
On Friday, China assured us that their hydropower development in the lower reaches would not negatively affect the area.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning even claimed that their project is aimed at speeding up in the process of developing clean energy. She added that their project will also respond to climate change and extreme hydrological disasters.
"China has always been responsible for the development of cross-border rivers. China's hydropower development in the lower reaches of the Yarlung Zangbo River aims to speed up developing clean energy, and respond to climate change and extreme hydrological disasters. The hydropower development there has been studied in-depth way for decades, and safeguard measures have been taken for the security of the project and ecological environment protection," TOI quoted Ning as saying.
"The project will not negatively affect the lower reaches. China will continue to maintain communication with countries at the lower reaches through existing channels, and step up cooperation on disaster prevention and relief for the benefit of the people by the river." she added.
China approves dam project:
Earlier on Wednesday, China approved the construction of the world's largest dam on the Brahmaputra River in Tibet. This triggered apprehensions among the governments in India and Bangladesh.
China released an official statement confirming its plan to construct a dam on the Yarlung Zangdo River, the Tibetan name for the Brahmaputra River.
According to details, the dam will be constructed at a significant gorge where the river forms a U-turn before entering Arunachal Pradesh. This then flows into Bangladesh.
The South China Morning Post reported on Thursday that China will expend over one trillion yuan ($137 billion) on this mega project, which is much higher than other infrastructure projects worldwide. The budget surpasses even China's Three Gorges Dam.
Earlier in 2015, China started operations of Tibet's largest facility, $1.5 billion Zam Hydropower Station.
China had incorporated the Brahmaputra dam project into its 14th five-year plan (2021-2025), which was adopted by the CPC Plenum in 2020.
However, its big scale and the location are also a matter of concern which will make China think about engineering challenges they would face.
Why India object?
India's reservations to the Chinese mega-project stems from China's ability to control water flow and using it during conflicts citing the dam's unprecedented scale, added TOI.
Meanwhile, India is also constructing its own dam on the Brahmaputra River in Arunachal Pradesh.
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Business NewsNewsWorldChina assures Brahmaputra Dam in Tibet will have ‘no negative impact on lower reaches’
First Published:27 Dec 2024, 10:46 PM IST
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