In the year 1902, India witnessed the first Hydel-power house on the River Kaveri in Sivasamudram, Karnataka. However, it was just the beginning and almost immediately Tata Hydroelectric Scheme in the Western Ghats of Maharashtra, to furnish power to Mumbai, was established. Pykara was marked as the first water power station in Tamil Nadu. Water Projects in India followed even in the Northern part of the country and Mandi Power House was the first one, developed in the Himalayan region. The next one in the pipeline was the Upper Ganga Canal Hydroelectric Grid System. The water projects of India are also the part of the several multi purpose projects. One of the illustrious water projects in India is the Rihand Project. This is the largest man made lake in India, on the fringes of Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh. Its capacity is 300 mw each year. The Koyna Project in Maharashtra is another important water project in India and is constructed on an east flowing tributary of the River Krishna. A dam on the Koyna Riverhas been built only to ferry waters through a tunnel to the western slopes of the Ghats. Its capacity is 880 mw and it provides power to the Mumbai-Pune industrial region. The Sharavathy Project, another important water project in India is located in the Jog Falls in Karnataka. Its total capacity is 891 mw. It serves the Bengaluru industrial region and also furnishes the states of Goa and Tamil Nadu. The Saharigiri Project in Kerala, The Balimela Project in Orissa and the Salal Project for Hydro-electricity in Jammu and Kashmir are other important water projects in India. In addition to these power projects, India has also built a gigantic Hydel power project in Bhutan at Chukha, which was financed by India. The excess energy is brought by India for its use in the north-eastern parts of the country, including West Bengal. The National Hydroelectric Power Corporation Ltd, (NHPC) was established in 1975. It has added 2133 mw raw Hydel power since then. These encompass- Chamera Stage I, Uri, Salal Stage I, Baira-Siul, Loktok, Tanakpur. With the evolution and development of technology, and with the growing demand for water and energy, along with the growing Indian population, more such Water Projects in India are being planned by the government. |