Wildlife institute warnings overlooked as Subansiri project endangers elephant passage

A hydrological study recommended by WII has been pending for over a year despite the grave flash flood threat to elephants crossing the river by the Dulung-Subansiri elephant corridor during the project’s ‘peaking’ operations after full commissioning.

The 2,000-MW hydropower project was scheduled to be commissioned partially in May this year and fully in 2026. It is, however, likely to miss the May deadline.

Official sources told The Assam Tribune that both the Standing Committee of the National Board for Wildlife (NBWL) and the Government of Assam have remained silent for over a year on this key recommendation.

The 2023 report of the site inspection committee chaired by Prof Raman Sukumar as per the recommendations of the Standing Committee called for a study by WII and regional scientific institutes to determine the ecological impacts of peaking due to the SLHEP. It also suggested that NHPC should compensate for mitigation of those impacts.

Then, in January 2024, the report of WII submitted to the Standing Committee took serious cognizance of the threat to elephants and warned that elephants, particularly calves and young elephants, were extremely vulnerable to flash floods that could sweep elephants away, resulting in separation and even drowning. It further stated that the critical corridor also ran the risk of rendered nonfunctional.

“The hydro-peaking scenarios that were provided by NHPC to WII indicate a rise in water level by around 2 metres with a concomitant increase in the water velocity in and around the demarcated corridor area. The potential threats of this indicated hydro-peaking scenarios to elephants are twofold: (i) despite being good swimmers, elephants, particularly the calves and young elephants, are vulnerable to flashfloods that could sweep elephants away, resulting in separation and even drowning. (ii) Recurrent incidences of elephants being swept during river crossing could trigger behavioural avoidance of the vulnerable stretches resulting in functional loss of the corridor,” the report noted.

When asked, an NHPC official said that the matter had been “settled” with the NBWL ignoring the recommendation.

From official documents accessed by this correspondent, it appears that the recommendation was ignored following a request to that effect by NHPC to the Member Secretary, NBWL during their meeting on January 29, 2024.

Furthermore, as the report observed, the effect of hydro-peaking on the river islets, particularly their vegetation structure, remains unknown in the present. These fine-level evaluations pertaining to the effect of hydro-peaking, invoking an experimental approach including high-resolution hydrological modelling incorporating contour details along with varying flow modulation scenarios and how this will impact key species like elephants, dolphins and their habitats, are essential for informed decision-making.

“Based on the findings of the survey, it is evident that any drastic and frequent modulation in the river flow would be inimical for the Dulung-Subansiri elephant corridor, which is an extremely crucial link in maintaining the continuity of elephant habitats along the Himalayan foothills in the northeastern region.

“In the long-term interest of elephant conservation in the landscape, declaring the complex of Dulung RF-Kakoi RF including the select islets within the river as a Wildlife Sanctuary/Conservation Reserve under the provision of the WPA, 1972 is imperative,” the report recommended.

Unfortunately, all these recommendations have fallen on deaf ears, with all the authorities concerned – NBWL, Assam government and the National Hydroelectric Power Corporation (NHPC) – choosing to ignore those completely.

Sources said that the capacity of the project will be utilized during peaking hours (during the morning and evening hours) creating flood-like situations during these hours.

Significantly, the Standing Committee of NBWL had during 2018 restricted “peaking” for the 1,750-MW Lower Demwe project considering the ecological consequences and recommended a study by the WII to determine the impacts due to peaking.

“But in the case of the 2,000-MW SLHEP, this is ignored despite being a key WII recommendation for reasons best known to the authorities. This is a glaring example of intrusive developmental activities destroying critical wildlife habitats even when alternative options are there. This is disturbing at a time when we are witnessing an intensifying human-elephant conflict due to loss of elephant corridors and habitat,” sources said.