The demand to cancel the Central Government’s ₹20,000-crore mega solar power project in Himachal Pradesh is getting stronger. Kargil war hero and BJP leader Brigadier Khushal Thakur (retd) has joined environmentalists and local activists in opposing the project, warning that it could cause serious harm to the fragile Himalayan ecosystem.
According to Thakur, the project involves setting up a 713-km high-voltage direct current (HVDC) transmission line from Pang in Ladakh to Kaithal in Haryana, passing through Lahaul Spiti, Kullu, Mandi, and Bilaspur districts.
He said that this massive infrastructure plan will worsen the state’s environmental problems. “The four-laning of the Kiratpur–Manali highway has already damaged the environment, and a new railway line up to Leh is also planned.
Now, the Center wants to add a high-voltage power corridor through the Beas Valley. The fragile Himalayas simply cannot bear the pressure of such mega projects,” he said.
Thakur also raised concerns about land acquisition, saying that thousands of bighas will be taken from locals who have already given land for the highway. “Just imagine high-voltage lines running above houses, hotels, and rivers.
It will be an eyesore and destroy the beauty of this valley,” he said, adding that there is an urgent need to review the project’s environmental and social impact. He pointed out that Himachal Pradesh will not gain much financially from this project and urged politicians from all parties to act before it is too late. “Both people and the mountains will suffer.
We must choose between development and destruction. This project will only bring destruction and should be cancelled,” Thakur said.
Approved in 2023, the project aims to build a 5-gigawatt (GW) grid power line at a cost of ₹20,773 crore to carry electricity from a 13 GW solar park being developed on 20,000 acres of land in Pang, Ladakh, to Kaithal in Haryana. The project, described by the government as an engineering marvel, is expected to be completed by 2029–30.
Kullu-based environmentalist Guman Singh, who is also the coordinator of the Himalaya Niti Abhiyan, echoed Thakur’s concerns.
He said that large-scale projects like this should not be allowed in the fragile Himalayan region. “Mega projects, whether solar or hydro, increase surface temperature and accelerate glacier melting. Rivers will run dry, and the region will face severe climate impacts,” he said.
He added that if the government truly wants to slow down the effects of climate change and save the Himalayas, it must cancel such projects immediately. “Otherwise, we will all suffer in the near future,” Singh warned.
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