Will take steps to protect our interests: India on China's mega dam

Days after China announced its plan to build a mega-dam on the Brahmaputra river in Tibet, India on Friday said it will continue to monitor and take necessary measures to protect its interests.

In its first reaction to the proposed dam, New Delhi urged Beijing to ensure that the interests of downstream States of the Brahmaputra are not harmed by activities in upstream areas.

"We will continue to monitor and take necessary measures to protect our interests," external affairs ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said.

There have been apprehensions that the dam will have an adverse impact on the ecological balance of Arunachal Pradesh and Assam. The Brahmaputra passes through these two states.

"As a lower riparian state with established user rights to the waters of the river, we have consistently expressed, through expert-level as well as diplomatic channels, our views and concerns to the Chinese side over mega projects on rivers in their territory," Jaiswal said.

"These have been reiterated, along with the need for transparency and consultation with downstream countries, following the latest report," he said.

"The Chinese side has been urged to ensure that the interests of downstream States of the Brahmaputra are not harmed by activities in upstream areas," he added.

On December 25, China announced its plan to construct the world's largest dam on the Brahmaputra River in Tibet, close to its border with India.

The project is estimated to cost around $137 billion. The dam will be located in the ecologically fragile Himalayan region.

According to available details, the dam will be built at a huge gorge in the Himalayan reaches where the Brahmaputra makes a huge U-turn to flow into Arunachal Pradesh and then to Bangladesh.

China's announcement on the dam raised concerns in India as well as Bangladesh.

Last week, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning played down the apprehensions about the project .

"The project will not negatively affect the lower reaches," she said, referring to the concerns in India and Bangladesh.

"China will continue to maintain communication with countries at the lower reaches through existing channels and step up cooperation on disaster prevention and relief for the benefit of the people by the river," she said.