New Delhi, Dec 27: The Centre’s green panel has approved the 260-megawatt Dulhasti Stage-II hydropower project on the Chenab River in Jammu and Kashmir’s Kishtwar district, officials said on Saturday.
The approval was granted by the Expert Appraisal Committee (EAC) on hydel projects during its 45th meeting earlier this month, clearing the way for floating construction tenders for the run-of-the-river project, estimated to cost over ₹3,200 crore.
The clearance comes amid India’s suspension of the Indus Waters Treaty with Pakistan following the deadly Pahalgam terror attack in April this year. According to the meeting minutes, the panel observed that the Chenab basin waters were earlier shared between India and Pakistan under the Indus Waters Treaty, 1960, and that the project parameters had been planned in accordance with the treaty. However, it noted that the treaty has remained suspended since April 23, 2025.
When the treaty was in force, Pakistan had rights over the Indus, Jhelum and Chenab rivers, while India had rights over the Ravi, Beas and Sutlej. With the treaty now in abeyance, the Centre is moving ahead with multiple hydroelectric projects in the Indus basin, including Sawalkote, Ratle, Bursar, Pakal Dul, Kwar, Kiru, and Kirthai I and II.
Dulhasti Stage-II is an extension of the existing 390 MW Dulhasti Stage-I Hydroelectric Project, which has been operational since 2007 under the National Hydroelectric Power Corporation Limited.
As per the plan, water will be diverted from the Stage-I power station through a separate tunnel measuring 3,685 metres in length and 8.5 metres in diameter to create a horseshoe-shaped pondage for Stage-II. The project will also include a surge shaft, pressure shaft, and an underground powerhouse with two 130 MW units, giving it a total installed capacity of 260 MW.
The project will require an estimated 60.3 hectares of land, including 8.27 hectares of private land from two villages—Benzwar and Palmar—in Kishtwar district. (Agencies)
