Is India generating enough power through its hydroelectric power plants?

By: Anshul Vipat

On August 15, Prime Minister Narendra Modi reiterated the need of being "Atmanirbhar" (self-reliant) in the energy industry. Addressing the nation on the occasion of India's 76th independence day from the ramparts of the Red fort, Modi stated that the country must "achieve the next stage of energy independence" through the use of Biofuels, solar energy, and the adoption of electric vehicles.

On August 15, Prime Minister Narendra Modi reiterated the need of being "Atmanirbhar" (self-reliant) in the energy industry. Addressing the nation on the occasion of India's 76th independence day from the ramparts of the Red fort, Modi stated that the country must "achieve the next stage of energy independence" through the use of Biofuels, solar energy, and the adoption of electric vehicles.

In fact, the NITI Aayog has forecasted that by 2030, nearly 80 percent of two and three wheelers, 30-70 percent of cars and 40 percent of buses will run on electricity. India’s transition to the electric mobility system can save Rs 20 lakh crore by 2030 on oil imports alone. India has a total capacity of 403,760 MW for the generation of electricity, with the private sector providing nearly half of that capacity, according to the Central Electricity Authority (CEA).

Over half of India's power generation capacity comes from coal plants alone, demonstrating the nation's heavy reliance on fossil fuels. Solar energy makes up 14.3 percent of all renewable energy sources, followed by hydroelectricity (11.6 percent) and wind (10 percent). Less than 2 percent of India's power generation capacity is based on nuclear energy. India’s transition to electric mobility system face hurdles as there is not enough generation of electricity from the hydropower plants. India is a country with lot of rivers and water bodies, but it has been noticed that the potential is not fully utilized. In central India, the hydroelectric power potential from the Godavari, Mahanadi, Nagavali, Vamsadhara and Narmada river basins has not been developed on a major scale due to potential opposition from the tribal population. Similar factors have halted India's electricity generation from hydro power plants. Brahmaputra has highest potential in terms of generating Hydroelectricity followed by Indus, Ganga. East following rivers have largest potential as compared to west following rivers and central Indian basins.

The chart below shows hydroelectricity generation in India from 2015-2021.

Source: Statista

The hydroelectricity generation has been not very impressive but only satisfactory in spite of large number of rivers, dams, reservoirs and heavy monsoon in many parts of the country. The hydroelectricity generation was the highest (155.67 terawatts) in 2020 in spite of the covid-19 pandemic but again dropped to 150.3 terawatt hours in 2021. It is the need of the hour to minimize dependence on fossil fuels for electricity generation and maximize dependence on renewable sources of energy like Sun, Wind and Water. India’s electricity demand is expected to double in the next decade, at such point of time maximizing hydroelectricity generation is one of the viable solutions to meet the rising demand of electricity.