The pickup truck jolted up the steep mountain path flanked by snow-capped Himalayan peaks that were nearly 7,000 metres (22,965 feet) high, away from the thundering Sutlej River. The nine passengers were on their way to the isolated Kandar village in India's Kinnaur area to carry out their activism against the construction of new dams.
Once the majority of the few dozen Indigenous occupants' old dwellings were damaged by falling stones in 2005, they were forced to relocate. Villagers also think tunnelling for dams was to fault, despite official denials to the contrary.
The 30-year-old Buddha Sain Negi travelled there to learn more about the ongoing difficulties of the Kandar people. The activists listened to locals describe how India's hydropower push had upended their lives and sparked nearly two decades of resistance while sitting on a steep slope overlooking a 19-year-old dam. Before they received. compensation to build new homes, some people sought refuge in sheds, and more lives were lost as a result of falling stones. Yet, the compensation was insufficient to restore livelihoods.
Raj Kumari, 48, a peasant, still recalls that night's terror. The farmer claimed that when the boulders started to fall, her husband was outside. She remarked, "My daughter predicted that only her father would survive and we'll get left behind and perish."
The urge for dams, a favourite project of Indian governments, has exploded as the country searches for 24/7 energy that doesn't emit greenhouse gases. Hydropower is often created when swift water rotates turbines to produce electricity.
But in this area with low rainfall, dams have changed the natural water systems, making it difficult for farmers to irrigate their orchards. Climate change is also causing the spring waters from melting glaciers that they have historically relied on to dry up.
After a deadly landslip in the region last August, farmers found themselves transformed into activists fighting against further dams. Scientists and residents have warned that mountain tunnel construction has increased the frequency of disastrous landslides, despite the fact that the authorities claim to take safeguards.
Opponents of the dam cite further effects: To make room for building, thousands of trees are being hacked down, including the rare Chilgoza pine, whose nuts are coveted and generate significant cash for nearby communities. Some families find it difficult to submerge their loved ones' cremated remains since parts of the Sutlej River are now dry. And other locals worry that the influx of thousands of migrant workers who would be working on the dam will be too much for them.
According to Jiya Lal, a farmer who is a member of an advocacy group for environmental justice in the highlands, the area, which is home to over 100,000 people, already produces 4,000 megawatts of clean energy, which is equal to four nuclear power plants. He said that villagers have been urged to reconsider their opposition to dams in the name of "national interest." How much more can be expected of us, he posed in a query that reverberated throughout the Himalayas?
By 2030, the federal government wants India's dams to produce 70,000 megawatts of energy, a 50% increase that may make up 8.5% of the country's total installed capacity. Additionally, it aims to build pumped-storage dams with a combined capacity of 18,800 megawatts. These dams serve as enormous batteries that store energy by pumping water from one elevated reservoir to another, where it is then released through turbines to generate electricity.
India has more dams than any other country, with about 4,400 total. The nation is hoping that dams will assist in finding a solution to the clean energy conundrum of how to keep the system powered by renewables when the sun isn't out or the wind isn't blowing.
The electricity produced by dams in the Himachal Pradesh state, according to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, will create income and jobs. In October, he observed, "The abundance of water and forest in tribal areas is priceless. But, previous catastrophes, like as the flooding of a holy town in January, have raised "questions" about the emphasis on dams as a means of delivering 24/7 clean power, according to Vibhuti Garg, an energy economist at the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis.
Large dams serve as the "backbone" of India's energy system by enabling it to balance the grid in the event of sudden changes in demand, according to Ammu Susana Jacob, a scientist at the think tank Center of Study of Science, Technology, and Policy. Around 10% of India's electricity comes from the sun or wind. As per government estimations, India has to grow its energy storage capacity to 41 gigawatts in order to transition away from dirty fuels and achieve its 2030 goals.
The hydroelectric company Shree Bhavani Power Project's director, Bhanu Pratap Singh, bemoaned the fact that dams hadn't had the same level of government support as solar or wind energy, but he said that this was beginning to change.
Private enterprises were less eager to construct major dams as a result of delays brought on by legal difficulties obtaining property, according to Singh. He also stated that there needed to be "constant and transparent conversation" between those opposed to dams and those building them due to growing worries about the dangers of doing so in the vulnerable highlands.
Although dams don't require pricey imports, unlike battery storage, they are nonetheless expensive. Communities are frequently uprooted in order to make room for them, and land is limited. Local protests, like the one in Kinnaur, are brought on by cascading environmental effects and raise expenses. Due to this, hydropower in India is more expensive than solar or wind electricity.
India is confronted with the "tricky" decision of whether it makes sense to lock billions of dollars into new dams when other technologies are becoming more practical, according to Rahul Walawalkar, the executive director of the industry group India Energy Storage Alliance. Global battery prices have been falling since 2017 and are expected to continue to do so.
There are few choices available to India if it wishes to impose import restrictions because of the sheer size of its energy transition and the fact that its demand for power would increase more than anywhere else over the next 20 years. It's a necessary risk, according to Walawalkar.
According to Shanta Kumar Negi, a local politician, people in the upper elevations of the mountains purchase water to irrigate their farms, and dams exacerbate the water issue brought on by global warming. The costs of India's response to this challenge weigh big in Kinnaur. How will I answer my children if I don't fight to stop the harm being done to us? he asked.
According to experts, the current demonstrations in Kinnaur and other places highlight the dangers of building dams without considering the potential environmental effects and associated expenditures. According to a parliamentary study, at least 37 dams were delayed in 2019, and there were another 41 where building hadn't started due to factors like financial difficulties or protests.
On the national highway in Kinnaur, there are warnings about loose boulders on mountain sides, and old trees have red crosses painted on them to indicate that they are to be cut down due to concerns over dam construction.
According to Abinash Mohanty, who oversees climate change and sustainability at the international development group IPE Global, the issue represents India's "siloed approach" to developing large-scale projects like dams that ignore climate concerns. Although the Himalayas have a more delicate ecosystem than others due to climate extremes and extensive human activity, it was not considered whether the environment had reached a tipping point.
Mohanty compared it to somebody attempting to lift more weight than they are capable of. He warned, "You'll either hurt yourself or drop it."
Threats are being made worse by climate change. A 2016 study found that 177 dams built close to Himalayan glaciers may be at risk of flooding if glacial lakes break. Five years later, two dams were destroyed by a flood made worse by melting glaciers, resulting in at least 31 fatalities.
Even some dams stated in official records as having been built to pump water to aid in electricity storage aren't actually doing so. According to the India Energy Storage Alliance, an additional reservoir is currently being created for a 17-year-old dam while a 25-year-old Gujarati dam cannot pump water due to an engineering problem.
India has developed rules that recommend doing away with environmental reviews and public hearings for some projects in order to increase the use of pumped-storage dams.
But, Walawalkar of the business alliance argued that governments should exercise caution when deciding where to build dams. Broad environmental clearances could have both benefits and drawbacks, he said.
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