Amira El-Fekki
India is sounding the alarm over China's plan to build the world's largest hydropower dam on the Brahmaputra River, warning it could sharply reduce water flows into its northeast, Reuters reported.
Newsweek has reached out to the Indian and Chinese Ministries of Water Resources for comment.
Why It Matters
Tensions over China's Brahmaputra mega-dam raise stakes between the two nuclear-armed neighbors. The river flows through areas where China and India have disputed territory—Arunachal Pradesh. The move has stoked fears in New Delhi that its longtime strategic rival could use its control of the river as leverage.
The mega dam will expand China's green energy capacity, aligning with President Xi Jinping's 2060 carbon-neutral target, even as it remains the world's top greenhouse gas emitter. The project has sparked environmental and geopolitical concerns over its effects on a biodiverse river system that millions rely on downstream in India and Bangladesh.
What To Know
Officials told Reuters the project risks cutting dry season supplies by as much as 85 percent, raising fears Beijing could one day wield water as a weapon.
India's External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar pressed China on the Brahmaputra dam during a meeting with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi last week, part of Wang's two-day official visit to India at the invitation of National Security Adviser Ajit Doval, the ministry said in a statement.
In July, China's Premier Li Qiang announced that construction had officially begun on what is set to become the world's largest hydropower dam on the Brahmaputra (also known as the Yarlung Tsangpo) River. China has defended its sovereignty rights regarding the construction of the Medog Hydropower Station.
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