The Centre has approved a new 260 MW hydroelectric project on the Chenab River in Jammu and Kashmir’s Kishtwar district, giving a major boost to power generation in the region.
The project, called Dulhasti Stage-II, has been cleared by the Environmental Appraisal Committee (EAC) under the Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change. The total cost of the project is estimated at ₹3,277.45 crore.
The new plant will be built as an extension of the existing 390 MW Dulhasti Stage-I project, which has been operational since 2007 and is run by NHPC Ltd. Water for the new project will be taken from the Stage-I power station through a 3.6-km-long tunnel, which will carry water to a newly built horseshoe-shaped pondage for Stage-II.
Officials said the project has been designed in line with the Indus Water Treaty (IWT) of 1960, although the treaty was suspended by India in April 2025 following the Pahalgam terror attack.
The project will include an underground powerhouse with two units of 130 MW each, along with a surge shaft and pressure shaft. Once completed, it will add 260 MW of clean electricity to the national grid.
Around 60.3 hectares of land will be required for the project. Of this, 8.27 hectares of private land will be acquired from two villages, Benzwar and Palmar, in the Kishtwar district.
The clearance is being seen as a significant step towards strengthening India’s hydropower capacity in Jammu and Kashmir and making better use of water resources from the Chenab basin.
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