Centre Clears Stage-2 of Dulhasti Hydel Project in Jammu and Kashmir
A high-level environmental panel under the Ministry of Environment has granted approval for Stage-2 of the Dulhasti hydroelectric project on the Chenab river in Jammu and Kashmir’s Kishtwar district. The project has a planned capacity of 260 megawatts and is estimated to cost over ₹3,200 crore, officials said.
The clearance was granted by the Expert Appraisal Committee on hydropower projects during its 45th meeting earlier this month, enabling the initiation of construction tenders for the run-of-the-river project.
According to the meeting records, the Chenab basin is a shared river system between India and Pakistan under the Indus Waters Treaty, and the project’s design parameters were originally planned in line with the treaty provisions. However, the panel noted that the Indus Waters Treaty has been suspended by India with effect from April 23, 2025, following the Pahalgam terror attack.
When the treaty was in force, Pakistan held rights over the Indus, Jhelum and Chenab rivers, while India had control over the Ravi, Beas and Sutlej. With the treaty currently in abeyance, the Centre is moving ahead with multiple hydropower projects in the Indus basin, including Sawalkote, Ratle, Bursar, Pakal Dul, Kwar, Kiru and Kirthai stages I and II.
The Dulhasti Stage-2 project is an extension of the existing 390-MW Dulhasti Stage-1 power station, which has been operational since 2007 and is managed by National Hydroelectric Power Corporation Limited.
As per the project plan, water from the existing Stage-1 facility will be diverted through a 3,685-metre-long tunnel with a diameter of 8.5 metres to create a horseshoe-shaped pondage for Stage-2 generation.
The total land requirement for the project is 60.3 hectares, including 8.27 hectares of private land to be acquired from two villages in the Kishtwar district.
