Floods across north-east India and Bangladesh every year is a part of Chinese Water warfare
Since the past few years, the frequent floods across the North-eastern states of India and Bangladesh have become a common sight. Some people blame it on the weather and others on climate change. But what we fail to understand is how back in the day, the Chinese built some of the biggest Hydropower dams across the Brahmaputra river (Yarlung Zangbo in China) which are meant to attack India in a rather strategical manner.
A total of 4 Dams are currently active on the Yarlung Zangbo river namely Zangmu Water Power Station (510 MW), Dagu Dam (640 MW), Jiacha Dam (320 MW) and Jiexu Dam (Capacity unknown). These dams not only are built across the geological fault lines right beside the river but also have complete control of water flowing to India. Not to forget a few more are under construction or on the list of the Chinese government which lie barely a few kilometers from Arunachal Pradesh.
Within days of India announced plans to assert its right within the Indus Water Treaty with Pakistan in 2016, China said it was building a dam on a tributary of the Yarlung Zangbo. This was supposed to be its ‘most expensive hydel project’.
Prior to this year’s flood ‘season’, concerns raised in the House by BJP MLA Ashok Singhal and AIUDF legislator Aminul Islam over reports that China was constructing dams on the upper stream of the Brahmaputra. Singhal said the river’s water was found to be heavily polluted from time to time and that the constructions threaten the river.
Singhal claimed to have information that China was building mega dams and projects for diverting the river, which would adversely affect riparian Assam.
Anti-dam organisations in Assam have also raised their voices across the years against the reported completion of a major hydropower projects by China on Yarlung Zangbo some activists even threatened to lay siege to the Chinese embassy in New Delhi.
Unfortunately with a matter of time, these arguments & concerns found a place in documents and were sidelined by the governments.
But this issue doesnt end here. as over 10 million people each year in India and almost 20 million in Bangladesh suffer due to flash floods and overflow of water by the Brahmaputra river (Jamuna in Bangla) which is sanctioned by the Chinese government controlling Tibet.
Hundreds of crores of Indian government’s money goes in to cover up the losses for these floods which are bound the return every year thanks to the diplomacy in India before 2014 which let the completion of these dams despite the two Memorandums signed between the two countries in 2018.
China has been aiming to attack India strategically on almost all fronts and India has defended all the attacks significantly but what we need right now is a stronger response towards the constant Chinese efforts to disturb India and its people.
