Hydropower Projects: Generators of Energy and Haringer of Socio _Economic Development , TEESTAV Project in East Sikkim

Down the ages, rivers have been the basin of human development. They have provided man water, fertile soil, aquatic flora and fauna, and give them reasons to bind together in a social formation. Several great human civilisations took shape on riverbanks. The development of hydropower projects on high-gradient rivers has added a new dimension to the virtues of rivers. They have helped in the development and progress of far-flung remote areas in hilly terrain. The bonus, this development has no price attached to it. The energy generated through this mechanism is eco-friendly and extremely reliable. On these scores, hydropowereasily outscores other forms of power generation sources, viz., thermal or nuclear power plants. Wherever a hydropower project is constructed, questions are often raised about the changes in the environment it might bring. Admittedly, any major infrastructural development ushers in a number of changes. While some changes may be detrimental, there are many more of the beneficial kind. The negative changes in the environment brought on by the hectic activity at the construction site are at worst temporary, whereas the benefits of such projects bring to the well-being of the native people, state, and the nationalist for several decades.