HP among six states to ink MoU on Sept 15 as Kishau Dam deadlock ends

Fresh agreement spares Himachal of financial burden; state secures 378 MCM water share and annual power revenues

Ending an eight-year deadlock, six states are set to sign a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on September 15 for the construction of the 422 MW Kishau multipurpose hydro project, with Himachal Pradesh being assured that it will not have to bear the project’s financial burden, according to the people privy to the matter.

Chief minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu had opposed the terms of an earlier agreement under which it was expected to bear the cost of electricity generation from the project along with Uttarakhand while downstream states would benefit from its water supply.

The memorandum will end a long-running dispute between Himachal Pradesh and other partner states, including Uttarakhand, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, and Rajasthan, over the financial burden and distribution of benefits from the project. The state had opposed the terms of an earlier agreement under which it was expected to bear the cost of electricity generation from the project along with Uttarakhand while downstream states would benefit from its water supply.

The previous BJP government in Himachal had also agreed to contribute ₹800 crore as the state’s share, but the present Congress government rejected the arrangement, citing the state’s limited financial resources.

The deadlock was resolved in June this year following a high-level meeting chaired by Union home minister Amit Shah in New Delhi. Under the fresh arrangement, 90% of the cost of the water component of the project will be borne by the Centre as central assistance, leaving Himachal with no financial burden for its construction. According to the agreed-upon terms, Delhi, Rajasthan and Haryana will bear the estimated cost of ₹2,000-crore on the power component on Himachal’s side, thus ending the deadlock.

The Kishau Dam, proposed on Tons river, a tributary of Yamuna, along the Himachal Pradesh-Uttarakhand border, will be among the tallest dams in India.

The project, located in Sirmour district, involves construction of a 236-metre-high concrete dam to generate hydropower, create an irrigation potential of 97,000 hectares, and supply 517 million cubic metres (MCM) of drinking water annually. The project is estimated to cost ₹15,000 crore.

“An MoU for the project is expected to be signed between the partner states and the Centre in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. According to the draft MoU circulated by the Centre to the participating states, all partner states would receive their legitimate share of power and water, while Himachal would also receive adequate water from the reservoir based on its requirements. With this, Himachal Pradesh had secured a right to 378 million cubic metres of water in the Yamuna basin,” the official said, pleading anonymity.

Chief minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu had termed the June meeting as a ‘major victory’ for Himachal Pradesh and said that the government had “successfully safeguarded” the state’s interests by rejecting the terms agreed upon during the tenure of the previous BJP government and securing a fresh arrangement under which the state would receive substantial benefits without making any financial contribution to the project.

Himachal government officials said the agreement would provide substantial long-term financial benefits to the state. “The state will receive around ₹600 crore annually from the power component of the project over the coming years without making any capital investment,” the official said.