Asia WaterWars: Bangladesh suffering worse water shortage crisis

Much water has flowed since China announced in December 2024 that it would build the world’s largest dam on the Brahmaputra River or Yarlung Tsangpo in Tibet to generate 60,000 megawatts of energy or 300 billion kilowatt-hours per year. The USD 137 billion Medog Hydropower Station, with commercial operations planned for 2033, has captured the imagination of media and planners worldwide for its energy potential as well as its perceived ecological impacts. The decision has been hotly contested in India over the possible downstream impacts, as the altered river flow could impact fresh water supplies and agriculture, while also increasing the risks of unpredictable floods and droughts. The river supports nearly 130 million people and six million hectares of farmland in the northeastern states of India, including Arunachal Pradesh and Assam. Indian hydrologists have also expressed concerns that the dam might block sediment flow and reduce the region's soil fertility. In response, the Indian government has proposed to build the 11,000 MW Siang Upper Multipurpose Project (SUMP) on the river, locally called the Siang. It will also store 9 billion cubic metres of water to regulate dry season flow, and is envisioned “as a buffer in case of excess and sudden water releases from dams in China”. Ironically, many locals in Arunachal, India, have opposed the project and taken to the streets in protest, claiming that the feasibility survey is being conducted secretly. They also fear large-scale displacement and possible demographic change due to the influx of outsiders. Bangladesh, on the other hand, which is already suffering from acute water shortage made worse by the climate crisis, depends heavily on the river, locally known as the Jamuna, for 55 percent of its irrigation needs as well as for drinking and fishery purposes. The flow of the river impacts more than 160 million people in the country. A 2022 Bangladesh Environment Ministry report says that even a 5 percent river flow reduction could lead to 15 percent decline in agricultural outputs in certain regions. s such, Bangladeshi officials fear the dam would reduce dry season flow and have asked the Chinese for an environmental impact assessment, a feasibility study, a climate impact assessment, and a disaster impact assessment of the dam. At a time when the anti-dam movement has gained momentum globally due to their social and environmental cost, countries in this part of the world are vying to invest in and develop mega projects on an already fragile Himalayan landscape prone to disasters, now made worse by the climate crisis. The Himalaya is also seismically active, and glacial lake outburst floods (GLOFs), where glacial lakes burst and cause massive, inland, tsunami-like floods, are a frequent occurrence. Medog Hydropower Station on the Brahmaputra River is only the latest example of such an undertaking. The Brahmaputra is a transboundary Himalayan river spanning China, Bhutan, India and Bangladesh. The river originates near Mount Kailash in Tibet, where it is called the Yarlung Tsangpo, and crosses 1,700 kilometres of China before it enters India after a sharp turn south, and from Bangladesh, where it is known as the Jamuna, it drains into the Bay of Bengal to merge with the Ganges.

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