Published on: January 23, 2023
China’s New dam
China’s New dam
Why in news? China is constructing a dam on the Mabja Zangbo river in Tibet, close to the tri-junction of India –Nepal and China
Highlights
- The dam is around 16 km north of the tri-junction and is opposite the Kalapani area of Uttarakhand
- Project will raise concerns regarding China’s future control on water in the region and also the possibility of a military establishment by China near the tri-junction and strengthen its claim on the disputed areas in the region.
- China could use this dam to divert and also store water that could lead to a scarcity in the regions dependent on the Mabja Zangbo river
- The project also lead to lower water levels in rivers such as the Ghaghara and the Karnali in Nepal.
- China announced that it would construct a massive dam on the lower reaches of the Yarlung Zangbo to generate up to 70 GW of power, the world’s largest hydropower plant in terms of installed capacity.
- This was among several other hydropower projects announced by China to generate clean energy and achieve carbon neutrality by 2060.
About Mabja Zangbo
- It is a river in Tibet Autonomous Region of China.
- Originating from Kangrinboq (Mount Kailash) it further joins River Ghaghara (Karnali) in Nepal and eventually flows into Ganga in India.
- It is situated on the tri-junction on Nepal’s border with India and China