Hydropower for a Sustainable Future
India stands at a critical juncture in its pursuit of sustainable development. With ambitious climate goals, a growing energy demand, and the imperative to reduce dependence on fossil fuels, hydropower has re-emerged as a cornerstone of our clean energy future. Jammu & Kashmir, with its immense hydrological potential, is uniquely positioned to contribute significantly to India’s transition towards carbon neutrality.
As I take over as Secretary, Department of Science & Technology, the Government of Jammu & Kashmir (GoJK) is embarking on a bold and forward-looking Hydropower Policy 2025. This policy aligns with India’s national energy agenda, global climate commitments, and the pressing need for decentralised and community-action centric sustainable development.
Hydropower: A Pillar of India’s Clean Energy Strategy
India is the world’s third-largest producer of electricity and the fifth-largest generator of hydroelectric power. As per the Central Electricity Authority (CEA), hydropower contributes nearly 11% to the national installed capacity (46.9 GW as of May 2025). The Government of India has accorded hydropower the status of renewable energy (March 2019), enabling it to avail fiscal and regulatory incentives on par with solar and wind. This has resulted in significant investment in the sector and involvement of local stakeholders.
The National Electricity Plan (2023–27) and the Hydro Power Development Policy (2019) emphasize the expansion of hydropower, particularly in Himalayan and North-Eastern states. Furthermore, India’s updated Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) under the Paris Agreement aim to achieve 50% of cumulative electric power installed capacity from non-fossil fuel sources by 2030. Hydropower, being dispatchable and grid-stabilizing, is vital to achieving this goal.
Jammu & Kashmir’s Untapped Potential
Jammu & Kashmir’s rivers and mountainous terrain offer a theoretical hydropower potential exceeding 20,000 MW, of which less than 15% is currently harnessed. The Draft Hydro Policy 2025 by GoJK seeks to unlock this potential through a robust framework that combines scientific planning, public-private partnerships, and environmental stewardship.
The key features of the policy include a clear classification of Project Categories into Small Hydro Projects (SHPs) up to 25 MW, and Medium Projects up to 100 MW, covering both Run-of-River and Storage types, for enabling potential investment, a transparent Allotment Mechanism through e-tendering and the Swiss Challenge Method, offering first right of refusal to the developer who identifies the project, establishment of multi-stakeholder Empowered Committees with panels led by JKPDD and the Science & Technology Department to oversee technical, environmental, and financial appraisal. The policy also introduces multiple incentives like the waiver of water usage charges, exemption from Inter-State Transmission System (ISTS) charges (as per Ministry of Power directive till June 2025), single-window clearances, carbon credit eligibility, and deferred free power royalty structures, and a Concession Period of 40 years with infrastructure transfer to the government at no cost at term-end.
The policy has been deliberated extensively, including expert consultations with IITs, MNRE, Engineering institutions and leading hydropower developers.
From Policy to Practice: Bidding process initiated for 35 Projects
The policy is not just aspirational; it is operational. Under the IPP and Swiss Challenge modes, 35 hydropower projects ranging from 3 MW to 10 MW have been tendered recently in June 2025 and are in the final stages of bidding. These projects, spread across districts such as Ganderbal, Poonch, Kishtwar, Anantnag, and Kathua, represent a step towards achieving a combined capacity of over 700 MW as a perspective plan.
Some highlights of these projects put to tendering include Ropeway-cum-HEP models integrating tourism and clean energy, rse of modular hydro technology to reduce land and ecological footprint, and requirement for developers to undertake biodiversity audits and tunnel surface minimization, reducing the impact on agricultural land and forest cover. These tenders include comprehensive RFQs and RFPs under both PPP and IPP frameworks, showing a clear convergence of policy design and implementation.
Aligning with NITI Aayog’s Agenda and SDGs
The NITI Aayog’s Energy Strategy emphasizes decentralized renewable solutions and mainstreaming hydropower in India’s clean energy mix. It also underscores the importance of just transition, local job creation, and resilience against climate shocks.
Jammu & Kashmir’s hydro policy reflects these values and commitments by prioritizing local participation in project execution and O&M, providing for tourism-linked incentives, especially for projects under 25 MW and ensuring environmental safeguards, including no usage charges for water and promoting carbon credit monetization.
Moreover, the policy aligns with Sustainable Development Goals (SDG 7 – Affordable & Clean Energy, SDG 13 – Climate Action, and SDG 15 – Life on Land).
Towards Carbon Neutrality: A Himalayan Opportunity
Jammu & Kashmir’s hydropower push contributes to India’s broader carbon neutrality goals announced at COP26 in Glasgow and subsequent policy initiatives, to achieve the commitment to net-zero by 2070. Hydropower, with its low lifecycle emissions (just 4 gCO₂/kWh for run-of-river plants), can serve as a balancing reserve to complement intermittent solar and wind.
Hydropower is not just clean energy—it is resilient energy. In a region prone to climate variability and glacial retreat, run-of-river and pumped-storage hydro can act as climate buffers. By integrating hydro with solar-wind hybrid parks and battery storage systems, we can develop a renewable baseload that supports urban, rural, and industrial loads.
Challenges and the Way Forward
The ambitious Hydro Policy and enabling industrial initiatives still require fast track processes and approval for achieving the goals envisioned therein. Despite the significant progress, many critical challenges persist. Clearance Delays need to be tackled through fast-tracking environmental, forest, and geological clearances which remains crucial to avoid cost escalations and delays. Hydropower has high upfront capital costs; innovative green bonds, blended finance, and viability gap funding are needed, hence a clear roadmap for financing the bottlenecks is something we immediately require to push for. Ensuring minimal displacement and respect for ecological corridors is vital to avoid conflicts around the community and conservation, equally.
The department of Science and Technology is focused on launching a Centre of Excellence in Small Hydro and Mountain Energy Systems in collaboration with national institutes, mapping all potential hydro sites using geospatial technology and AI for climate risk forecasting.Partnering with international agencies and carbon finance platforms to fund projects under Article 6 of the Paris Agreement.
A Public Policy Model in Action
The Hydropower Policy 2025 of Jammu & Kashmir is a textbook example of how science, policy, and action can come together to address one of the most pressing challenges of our time—clean, inclusive, and sustainable energy for all.
With the Government of India’s policy backing, global climate frameworks, and local administrative resolve, we are not just building dams—we are building resilience, equity, and hope.
The Himalayan streams of J&K, once seen as barriers, now offer a path to India’s clean energy future. It is a future worth investing in, scientifically, economically, and ethically.
The author, an Indian Administrative Service officer, currently serving as Secretary to Government, Department of Science & Technology, and Civil Aviation Department. (views are personal)
