31 July 2025
India plans to build what will be the largest hydroelectric power plant in the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir, the NDTV website reported on Thursday.
The 1856-Megawatt (MW) Sawalkote Hydroelectric Project on the Chenab River is expected to cost about $2.6 billion and will be built without seeking clearance from Pakistan, a condition that exists in the Indus Water Treaty (IWT) that India suspended in April.
India’s state-backed National Hydroelectric Power Corporation has initiated the tendering process for the Sawalkote project and has formally invited bids for the project, NDTV added.
The project was initially conceptualized in the 1980s but had been stalled for the past 40 years for various reasons, including procedural delays and objections from Pakistan over the potential impact of the dam on the flow of the Chenab River.
The project is now set to move forward with a planned two-phase construction.
Four hydroelectric projects with a total capacity of 2,026 MW have been launched in Jammu and Kashmir since 2019.
Source: RT
