The Heightened Risk of India's Impetus to Hydropower

Soyam Kaur

Abstract: The current Indian Government?s decision to increase investment in development of 31,350 MW hydropower projects to be implemented over the next eight years, has received a mixed response. To promote the hydropower sector and to make it a more viable investment for the private players, the government has declared large hydro projects as renewable energy, is assuring budgetary support for enabling infrastructure, and offering tariff rationalization. The government is also working on a scheme in which developers may receive up to 30% of the project cost as central assistance to further incentivise private investment in setting up of small hydro power plants. Environmentalists have raised the alarm and feel that these decisions need to be taken after due consideration of their ecological and social implications. Yet risks and safety considerations are often being brushed aside for short-term gains. This paper analyses the risks of expanding the hydropower capacity in India that compel caution.

Keywords: Hydropower, renewable energy, ecosystem, climate change, flash floods, global warming, dams, topography

How to Cite?: Soyam Kaur, "The Heightened Risk of India's Impetus to Hydropower", Volume 14 Issue 10, October 2025, International Journal of Science and Research (IJSR), Pages: 1604-1616, https://www.ijsr.net/getabstract.php?paperid=SR251028125618, DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.21275/SR251028125618