26 March 2022 - Small Hydropower Plants: Optimizing India's Energy Mix (E)
In light of the worsening climate crisis due to Fossil fuel emissions, it is now imperative for countries to move towards eco-friendly and sustainable sources of energy. India has taken a leadership position to move towards renewable sources of energy - and an important source to meet India’s rising demand for electricity generation is Hydropower. The North-eastern states with their mountainous topography and mighty rivers, have the largest hydropower prospects in the country. Together, Sikkim, Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Meghalaya, Manipur, Mizoram, Nagaland and Tripura account for almost 40 percent of the total hydropower potential of the country. Arunachal Pradesh - is sitting on a hidden treasure of natural resources for large and small scale Hydro Power, which alone can make the state, the leader in the country’s economy once its resources are utilised optimally. The state has hydro-power potential to the tune of 58000 MW. The state is working with various Central Public Sector Undertakings to harness this potential. In addition to the potential under mega projects, the state has immense potential to develop Small, Mini and Micro Hydels. To see how the state government is realising this potential, the India Science team travelled to Arunachal Pradesh and visited Micro and Mini hydropower plants in some of India’s remote and difficult terrain. We visited the Rahung Village in Dirang district, which is powered by the three 250 KW Turbines. We also visited Jigaon in RUPA District, where two villages with over 100 Families rely on the MICRO hydropower plants for their Electricity Needs. So in this episode ,we will discuss the working of crossflow & francis turbines and the technology behind the small micro and mini hydropower plants. We will also talk about the Golden jubilee border village illumination programme, a joint initiative of the state and union government to provide electricity to the remotest parts of the region. This and much more on Science for a Self Reliant India, only on India Science.
