• Ankur Srivastava
• Poonam Sharma
• Rachna Dua

Mountains always have been a keen investigating area across the world. Supplying half of the world’s population with fresh water, they are also considered as “water tower”. As the mountains are home to some of the most fragile ecosystem on the planet, adequate environmental and social safeguard is needed while developing energy options in such eco-sensitive regions. In the present developing state of the world’s economy, in order to bridge the demand-supply energy gap, there is need for additional energy sources. This gap can be filled by tapping the high velocity rivers suitable for hydro power generation in hilly and mountainous regions. Fortunately, the physiography of India is endowed fast-flowing rivers that cascade down from the parallel ranges of Himalayas having enormous clean and renewable energy potential. But, building hydropower projects have been a tough task due its fragile and geologically active nature. It has been estimated that 70 per cent of India’s hydro power potential is in the Indian Himalayan region (IHR). Hangrang Valley, a Himalayan tehsil has emerged as a major hydro production site in recent years, having suitable topography for Run-of-River (RoR) projects. Although on the other hand, developing such projects may result in negative impacts on ecological settings of fragile high altitude ecosystem which prevails here. Thus, this paper is an attempt to highlight the people’s perception and developmental aspects of hydro power projects in N-W Himachal Himalayas. Efforts have been made to map the possible outcome of the hydro installation in sensitive high altitude mountain ecosystem.

Hydro-Electric Projects, Mountain Ecosystem, Indian Himalayan Region (IHR), Hangrang Valley

"AN OVERVIEW OF HYDROPOWER DEVELOPMENT IN HANGRANG VALLEY, HIMACHAL PRADESH", International Journal of Emerging Technologies and Innovative Research (www.jetir.org), ISSN:2349-5162, Vol.6, Issue 2, page no.1664-1673, February-2019, Available :http://www.jetir.org/papers/JETIR1902E37.pdf

"AN OVERVIEW OF HYDROPOWER DEVELOPMENT IN HANGRANG VALLEY, HIMACHAL PRADESH", International Journal of Emerging Technologies and Innovative Research (www.jetir.org | UGC and issn Approved), ISSN:2349-5162, Vol.6, Issue 2, page no. pp1664-1673, February-2019, Available at : http://www.jetir.org/papers/JETIR1902E37.pdf