write an essay on hydel power in india class 12

Write an essay on hydel power in India. - Geography

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Write an essay on hydel power in India.

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Hydel power is a renewable energy resource because it uses the Earth’s water cycle to generate electricity. Water evaporates from the Earth’s surface, forms clouds, precipitates back to earth and flows toward the ocean. The movement of water as it flows downstream creates kinetic energy that can be converted into electricity. 2700 TWH is generated every year. Out of the total power generation installed capacity in India of 1,76,990 MW (June 2011), hydel power contributes about 21.5%, i.e. 38,106 MW.

Capacity addition of 78,700 MW is envisaged from different conventional sources during 2007-2012 (the 11th Plan), which includes 15,627 MW from large hydro projects. In addition to this, capacity addition of 1400 MW was envisaged from small hydro up to 25 MW station capacity. The total hydroelectric power potential in the country is assessed at about 150,000 MW, equivalent to 84,000 MW at a 60% load factor. The potential of small hydropower projects is estimated at about 15,000 MW.

Technology : A hydroelectric power plant consists of a high dam that is built across a large river to create a reservoir and a station where the process of energy conversion to electricity takes place. The first step in the generation of energy in a hydropower plant is the collection of runoff of seasonal rain and snow in lakes, streams, and rivers, during the hydrological cycle. The run-off flows to dams downstream. The waterfalls through a dam, into the hydropower plant and turns a large wheel called a turbine. The turbine converts the energy of falling water into mechanical energy to drive the generator. After this process has taken place electricity is transferred to the communities through transmission lines and the water is released back into the lakes, streams, or rivers. This is entirely not harmful because no pollutants are added to the water while it flows through the hydropower plant.
Potential in India: India is blessed with an immense amount of hydroelectric potential and ranks 5th in terms of exploitable hydro-potential in the global scenario. As per assessment made by CEA, India is endowed with economically exploitable hydropower potential to the tune of 148700 MW of installed capacity. The basinwide assessed potential is as under:


Indus Basin	33,832
Ganga Basin	20,711
Central Indian River system	4,152
Western Flowing Rivers of southern India	9,430
Eastern Flowing Rivers of southern India	14,511
Brahmaputra Basin	66,065
Total	1,48,701

In addition, 56 number of pumped storage projects have also been identified with a probably installed capacity of 94000 MW. In addition to this, hydro-potential from small, mini, and micro schemes has been estimated as 6782 MW from 1512 sites. Thus, in totality, India is endowed with a hydro-potential of about 250000 MW. Installed Capacity: The total installed capacity of India is 36878 MW

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Write an essay on hydel power in India.

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Write an essay on hydel power in India.

(NCERT class 12 geography, India People and Economy, Chapter-7- Chapter- Mineral and Energy Resources )

Hydel power is a source of energy that is regenerated from running water. To generate it, rainwater is collected and stored by making a dam on the river. The turbine which is installed under the dam, waterfalls on it through pipes inside. When water falls from the height on the turbine, the turbine blades move and it converts mechanical energy (motion energy) into electrical energy. This is called hydroelectricity.

Norway was the first country in the world to develop hydroelectricity. It is a non-exhaustible but conventional source of energy as it requires large displacement of the local communities (to build dams) along with submergence of large areas of forest.

The major producers of hydroelectric power in the world are Paraguay, Norway, Brazil, and China. India ranks 7th in the world in terms of hydroelectricity generation. The first hydroelectric power plant in India was established in 1898 in Darjeeling, West Bengal. The Brahmaputra basin in India has the largest hydroelectric potential to generate hydroelectric power (about 24 GW).

Some of the important hydroelectric stations in India are:

Tehri Dam is built on the Bhagirathi River in Uttarakhand and has a power capacity of 2400 MW which is the highest in India.
Bhakra Nangal Dam is situated on the river Sutlej which is situated in Himachal Pradesh.
Gandhi Sagar is situated on the Chambal River in Madhya Pradesh.
Nagarjunasagar is situated on the Krishna River which is situated in Andhra Pradesh.
The Rihand Dam is on the Rihand River which is a tributary of the Son River and is located in the Sonbhadra district of Uttar Pradesh.
Damodar Valley Project is on the Damodar River of Jharkhand.
A series of Sardar Sarovar dams have been built on the Narmada River.

Advantages of Hydroelectricity:

It is a largely non-polluting source of energy, however, methane (which is a greenhouse) gas emits from submerged forests. For example, the Rihand Dam emits large amounts of methane gas which is one of the methane hotspots in India.
It is a cheap source of electricity except for the initial high cost.
It promotes electricity as well as irrigation, fishing, and tourism.

Disadvantages of hydropower;

The construction of dams submerges large areas leading to the displacement of local communities, especially tribal communities.
Displacement of communities is very costly because India's population is high and land resources are very less.
Dams can be constructed only in limited places, usually in hilly areas.
Building dams destroys large ecosystems when they are submerged in water dams.
There is resentment(negative attitude) in society regarding the construction of big dams. For example, there was a huge movement of people against the construction of the Tehri Dam on the Ganges and the Sardar Sarovar Dam on the Narmada River.
Large dam construction increases the chances of reservoir-induced earthquakes.

NCERT Solutions for Class 12 Geography Chapter 7 Mineral and Energy Resources

Detailed, Step-by-Step NCERT Solutions for Class 12 Geography Chapter 7 Mineral and Energy Resources Questions and Answers were solved by Expert Teachers as per NCERT (CBSE) Book guidelines covering each topic in chapter to ensure complete preparation.

Class 12 Geography NCERT Solutions Chapter 7 Mineral and Energy Resources

August 1, 2019 by Bhagya

Class 12 Geography Chapter 7 NCERT Textbook Questions Solved

1. Choose the right answers of the following from the given options:

Question 1.(i) In which one of the following States are the major oil fields located? (a) Assam (b) Bihar (c) Rajasthan (d) Tamil Nadu Answer: (a) Assam

Question 1.(ii) At which one of the following places was the first atomic power station started? (a) Kalpakkam (b) Narora (c) Rana Pratap Sagar (d) Tarapur Answer: (d) Tarapur

Question 1.(iii) Which one of the following minerals is known as brown diamond? (a) Iron (b) Lignite (c) Manganese (d) Mica Answer: (b) Lignite

Question 1.(iv) Which one of the following is non-renewable source of energy? (a) Hydel (b) Solar (c) Thermal (d) Wind power Answer: (c) Thermal

2. Answer the following questions in about 30 words:

Question 2.(i) Give an account of the distribution of mica in India. Answer: Mica in India is produced in Jharkhand, Andhra Pradesh and Rajasthan followed by Tamil Nadu, West Bengal and Madhya Pradesh. In Jharkhand high quality mica is obtained in a belt extending over a distance of about 150 km, in length and about 22 km, in width in lower Hazaribagh plateau. In Andhra Pradesh. Nellore district produces the best quality mica. In Rajasthan mica belt extends for about 320 kms from Jaipur to Bhilwara and around Udaipur. Mica deposits also occur in Mysore and Hasan districts of Karnataka, Coimbatore, Tiruchirapalli, Madurai and Kannyakumari in Tamil Nadu, Alleppey in Kerala, Ratnagiri in Maharashtra, Purulia and Bankura in West Bengal.

Question 2.(ii) What is nuclear power? Mention the important nuclear power stations in India. Answer: Nuclear power is the power that is obtained by the energy released from nuclear fission that is splitting of nucleus of radioactive minerals like Uranium and Thorium. The energy released from the nuclear fission is used to heat water, the steam released from it is used to rotate a turbine which generates electricity. The important nuclear power projects are Tarapur (Maharashtra), (Rajasthan), Kalpakkam (Tamil Nadu), Narora (Uttar Pradesh), Kaiga (Karnataka), Rawatbhata near Kota and Kakarapara (Gujarat).

Question 2.(iii) Name non-ferrous metal. Discuss their spatial distribution. Answer: India is poorly endowed with non-ferrous metallic minerals except bauxite and copper. Bauxite: Bauxite is found mainly in tertiary deposits and is associated with laterite rocks occurring extensively either on the plateau or hill ranges of peninsular India and also in the coastal tracts of the country. Bauxite is the ore for Aluminium. Odisha happens to be the largest producer of Bauxite. Kalahandi and Sambalpur are the leading producers.

The other two areas which have been increasing their production are Bolangir and Koraput. The patlands of Jharkhand in Lohardaga have rich deposits. Gujarat, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra are other major producers. Bhavanagar, Jamnagar in Gujarat have the major deposits. Chhattisgarh has bauxite deposits in Amarkantak plateau while Katni-Jabalpur area and Balaghat in M.P. have important deposits of bauxite. Kolaba, Thane, Ratnagiri, Satara, Pune and Kolhapur in Maharashtra are important producers. Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Goa are minor producers of bauxite Copper:

The Copper deposits mainly occur in Singhbhum district in Jharkhand, Balaghat district in Madhya Pradesh and Jhunjhunu and Alwar districts in Rajasthan. It is imperative for electrical industry. Minor producers of Copper are Agnigundala in Guntur District (Andhra Pradesh), Chitradurg and Hasan districts (Karnataka) and South Arcot district (Tamil Nadu).

Question 2.(iv) What are non-conventional sources of energy? Answer: Non conventional sources of energy are those energy which have been recently put to use for commercial purpose. They are generally renewable and non polluting sources of energy. They have initial high cost of installation whereas their long time running cost is low and also they are environment friendly. Eg. Soar energy, wind energy, tidal and wave energy, geothermal energy and bioenergy.

3. Answer the following questions in about 150 words:

Question 3.(i) Write a detailed note on the Petroleum resources of India. Answer: Crude petroleum consists of hydrocarbons of liquid and gaseous states varying in chemical composition, colour and specific gravity. It is an essential source of energy for all internal combustion engines in automobiles, railways and aircraft. Its numerous by-products are processed in petrochemical industries.

Crude petroleum occurs in sedimentary rocks of the tertiary period. Oil exploration and production was systematically taken up after the Oil and Natural Gas Commission was set up in 1956. Till then, the Digboi in Assam was the only oil producing region but the scenario has changed after 1956. In recent years, new oil deposits have been found at the extreme western and eastern parts of the country. In Assam, Digboi, Naharkatiya and Moran are important oil producing areas. The major oil fields of Gujarat are Ankaleshwar, Kalol, Mehsana, Nawagam, Kosamba and Lunej. Mumbai High which lies 160 km off Mumbai was discovered in 1973 and production commenced in 1976. Oil and natural gas have been found in exploratory wells in Krishna-Godavari and Kaveri basin on the east coast. According to a newspaper report (The Hindu, 05.09.2006) the Oil and Natural Gas Commission has found potential zones of natural gas reserves in Ramanathapuram district. The survey is still in the initial stages. The exact quantity of gas reserves will be known only after the completion of the survey. But the results are encouraging. Oil extracted from the wells is crude oil and contains many impurities. It cannot be used directly. It needs to be refined. There are two types of refineries in India: (a) field based and (b) market based. Digboi is an example of field based and Barauni is an example of market based refinery. There are 18 refineries in India.

Question 3.(ii) Write an essay on hydel power in India. Answer: Hydel power is a renewable energy resource because it uses the Earth’s water cycle to generate electricity. Water evaporates from the Earth’s surface, forms clouds, precipitates back to earth, and flows toward the ocean. The movement of water as it flows downstream creates kinetic energy that can be converted into electricity. 2700 TWH is generated every year. Out of the total power generation installed capacity in India of 1,76,990 MW (June, 2011), hydel power contributes about 21.5%, i.e. 38,106 MW.

A capacity addition of 78,700 MW is envisaged from different conventional sources during 2007-2012 (the 11th Plan), which includes 15,627 MW from large hydro projects. In addition to this, a capacity addition of 1400 MW was envisaged from small hydro up to 25 MW station capacity. The total hydroelectric power potential in the country is assessed at about 150,000 MW, equivalent to 84,000 MW at 60% load factor. The potential of small hydro power projects is estimated at about 15,000 MW.

Technology: A hydroelectric power plant consists of a high dam that is built across a large river to create a reservoir, and a station where the process of energy conversion to electricity takes place. The first step in the generation of energy in a hydro power plant is the collection of run-off of seasonal rain and snow in lakes, streams and rivers, during the hydrological cycle. The run-off flows to dams downstream. The water falls through a dam, into the hydropower plant and turns a large wheel called a turbine.

The turbine converts the energy of falling water into mechanical energy to drive the generator. After this process has taken place electricity is transferred to the communities through transmission lines and the water is released back into the lakes, streams or rivers. This is entirely not harmful, because no pollutants are added to the water while it flows through the hydro power plant.

Potential in India: India is blessed with immense amount of hydro-electric potential and ranks 5th in terms of exploitable hydro-potential on global scenario. As per assessment made by CEA, India is endowed with economically exploitable hydro-power potential to the tune of 148700 MW of installed capacity. The basinwise assessed potential is as under:

Basin/rivers Probable	Installed Capacity (MW)
Indus Basin	33,832
Ganga Basin	20,711
Central Indian River system	4,152
Western Flowing Rivers of southern India	9,430
Eastern Flowing Rivers of southern India	14,511
Brahmaputra Basin	66,065
Total	1,48,701

In addition, 56 number of pumped storage projects have also been identified with probable installed capacity of 94000 MW. In addition to this, hydro-potential from small, mini and micro schemes has been estimated as 6782 MW from 1512 sites. Thus, in totality India is endowed with hydro-potential of about 250000 MW. Installed Capacity: The total installed capacity of India is 36878 MW

Class 12 Geography Chapter 7 NCERT Extra Questions

Class 12 geography chapter 7 very short answer type questions.

Question 1. Define minerals. Answer: A mineral is a natural substance of organic or inorganic origin with definite chemical and physical properties.

Question 2. Give examples of non metallic minerals. Answer: Fossil fuels, mica, limestone, graphite etc.

Question 3. Name ferrous minerals. Answer: All the minerals which contain iron come under this category. Like – Iron ore, manganese, chromite etc.

Question 4. What are the main types of iron found in our country? Answer: Haematite and Magnetite.

Question 5. Which state is the leading producer of manganese? Answer: Odisha is the leading producer of manganese.

Question 6. Name the manganese fields of Karnataka. Answer: Karnataka is a major producer of manganese and here the mines are located in Dharwar, Ballari, Belagavi, North Canara, Chikkmagaluru, Shivamogga, Chitradurg and Tumkur.

Question 7. What are the uses of mica? Answer: Used in electrical and electronic industries and also as an insulator.

Question 8. Which is the ore for aluminium? Which state is the largest producer? Answer: Bauxite is the ore for aluminium. Odisha is the largest producer.

Question 9. Where is copper found in India? Answer: Copper deposits mainly occur in Singhbhum district in Jharkhand, Balaghat district in Madhya Pradesh and Jhunjhunu and Alwar districts in Rajasthan. Minor deposits in Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu.

Question 10. What are canaries used for? Answer: Singareni collieries, the country’s premier coal production company, still uses canaries to detect the presence of deadly carbon monoxide in underground mines.

Question 11. Which are the two top coalfields of India? Answer: Jharia and Raniganj.

Question 12. What are the uses of petroleum? Answer: It is an essential source of energy for all internal combustion engines in automobiles, railways and aircraft. Its numerous by-products are processed in petrochemical industries such a fertiliser, synthetic rubber, synthetic fibre, medicines, vaseline, lubricants, wax, soap and cosmetics.

Question 13. Which mineral is referred to as liquid gold? why? Answer: Petroleum is referred to as liquid gold because of its scarcity and diversified uses.

Question 14. Which agency looks after the transport and marketing of natural gas? When was it set up? Answer: The Gas Authority of India Limited was set up in 1984 as a public sector undertaking to look after the transport and marketing of natural gas.

Question 15. How is solar energy generated? Answer: Sun rays tapped in photovoltaic cells can be converted into energy, known as solar energy. The two effective processes considered to be very effective to tap solar energy are photovoltaics and solar thermal technology.

Question 16. Name the sources of non conventional sources of energy. Answer: Solar, wind, bio, tidal and wave, geo thermal.

Question 17. Name the states with high potential for wind energy. Answer: Rajasthan, Gujarat, Maharashtra and Karnataka have favourable conditions to develop wind energy.

Question 18. Why is India endowed with a rich variety of mineral resources? Answer: India is endowed with a rich variety of mineral resources due to its varied geological structure. Bulk of the valuable minerals are products of pre-palaezoic age and are mainly associated with metamorphic and igneous rocks of the peninsular India.

Question 19. Why do we need minerals for economic development? Answer: Industrial development of a country depends on availability of minerals and economic development depends on industrial development. Therefore, we need minerals for economic development.

Question 20. How are minerals classified? Answer: Minerals are classified on the basis of their physical and chemical properties.

Metallic minerals
Non-metallic minerals.

Question 21. Name the area lacking natural resources. Answer: The vast alluvial plain tract of north India is devoid of minerals of economic use.

Question 22. There is inverse relationship between quantity and quality of minerals. Explain the statement Answer: It means that good quality minerals are less in quantity as compared to low quality minerals.

Question 23. Where are majority of minerals found in India? Answer: Most of the metallic minerals in India occur in the peninsular plateau region in the old crystalline rocks.

Question 24. In which of the river valleys important coal reserves are found? Answer: Over 97 per cent of coal reserves occur in the valleys of Damodar, Sone, Mahanadi and Godavari.

Question 25. Give the distribution of bauxite ore. Answer: Bauxite is produced in the following states.

Odisha is the largest producer.
Kalahandi and Sambalpur are the leading producers.
Gujarat, Chhattisgarh, M.P. and Maharashtra.
Balaghat in M.P.

Question 26. Name the areas where natural gas is found. Answer: Natural gas is found in:

Eastern Coast (Tamil Nadu, Odisha, Adhra Pradesh)
Maharashtra

Question 27. Name the nuclear power plant affected by tsunami which has recently been resumed. Answer: Kalpakkam in Tamil Nadu.

Question 28. Where are the richest monazite deposits found? Answer: Monazite reserves are found in Palakkad and Kollam districts of Kerala, Vishakhapatnam in Andhra Pradesh and Mahanadi river delta in Odisha.

Question 29. When was the first Atomic Energy Commission established and where? Answer: Atomic Energy Commission was established in 1948; while the Atomic Energy Institute at Trombay was established in 1954, which was renamed as the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre in 1967.

Question 30. Name the important features of non- conventional energy sources. Answer: Important features of non-conventional energy sources are:

Equitable distribution
Environment friendly
More sustained eco-friendly and cheaper after initial cost is taken care of.

Question 31. Solar energy is the hope of future. Discuss. Answer: Solar energy is the hope of future because it is:

Cost competitive

Question 32. What are the advantages of bio-energy? Answer:

Enhance self-reliance
Reduce environmental pollution
Reduce pressure on fuel wood
Conversion of municipal waste into energy.

Question 33. Why do we need to conserve resources? Answer:

They are limited in number
Exhaustible
More time to replenish
For sustainable development

Question 34. Write two important uses of coal. Answer:

Generation of thermal power
Smelting of iron ore for steel

Question 35. When was the first geo-thermal energy usage attempt made? Is there any geo-thermal plant in India? OR Where was the first underground heat tapped? Answer: The first successful (1890) attempt to tap the underground heat was made in the city of Boise, Idaho (U.S.A.), where a hot water pipe network was built to give heat to the surrounding buildings. This plant is still working. In India, a geothermal energy plant has been commissioned at Manikaran in Himachal Pradesh.

Question 36. Name one bio-energy effort made by India. Answer: One bio-energy project converting municipal waste into energy is situated at Okhla in Delhi

Class 12 Geography Chapter 7 Short Answer Type Questions

Question 1. Give an account of the distribution of bauxite in India. . Answer: Bauxite is used in manufacturing of aluminium. It is found mainly in tertiary deposits and is associated with laterite rocks occurring extensively either on the plateau or hill ranges of peninsular India and also in the coastal tracts of the country.

Odisha happens to be the largest producer of Bauxite. Ralahandi and Sambalpur are the leading producers. The other two areas which have been increasing their production are Bolangir and Koraput. The patlands of Jharkhand in Lohardaga have rich deposits.

Bhavanagar, Jamnagar in Gujarat have the major deposits. Chhattisgarh has bauxite deposits in Amarkantak plateau while Katni-Jabalpur area and Balaghat in M.P. have important deposits of bauxite.

Kolaba, Thane, Ratnagiri, Satara, Pune and Kolhapur in Maharashtra are important producers. Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Goa are minor producers of bauxite.

Question 2. What are the uses of coal? Where is it found in India? Answer: Coal is one of the important minerals which is mainly used in the generation of thermal power and smelting of iron ore. Coal occurs in rock sequences mainly of two geological ages, namely Gondwana and tertiary deposits. About 80 per cent of the coal deposits in India is of bituminous type and is of non-coking grade. The most important Gondwana coal fields of India are located in Damodar Valley.

They lie in Jharkhand-Bengal coal belt and the important coal fields in this region are Raniganj, Jharia, Bokaro, Giridih, Karanpura. Jharia is the largest coal field followed by Raniganj. Godavari, Mahanadi and Sone river valleys also have coal deposits.

The most important coal mining centres are Singrauli in Madhya Pradesh, Korba in Chhattisgarh, Talcher and Rampur in Odisha, Chanda-Wardha, Kamptee and Bander in Maharashtra and Singareni in Telangana and Pandur in Andhra Pradesh.

Tertiary coals occur in Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya and Nagaland. It is extracted from Darangiri, Cherrapunji, Mewlong and Langrin (Meghalaya); Makum, Jaipur and Nazira in upper Assam, Namchik – Namphuk (Arunachal Pradesh) ai d Kalakot (Jammu and Kashmir). Besides, the brown coal or lignite occur in the coastal areas of Tamil Nadu, Pondicherry, Gujarat and Jammu and Kashmir.

Question 3. Which are the prospective areas of natural gases in India? Answer: Natural gas is obtained alongwith oil in all the oil fields but exclusive reserves have been located along the eastern coast as well as (Tamil Nadu, Odisha and Andhra Pradesh), Tripura, Rajasthan and off¬shore wells in Gujarat and Maharashtra.

Question 4. List the major nuclear power stations along with the states. Answer: The important nuclear power projects are Tarapur (Maharashtra), Rawatbhata near Kota (Rajasthan), Kalpakkam(Tamil Nadu), Narora (Uttar Pradesh), Kaiga (Karnataka) and Kakarapara (Gujarat).

Question 5. What are the advantages of solar energy? Answer: Solar thermal technology has some relative advantages over all other non¬renewable energy sources. It is cost competitive, environment friendly and easy to construct. Solar energy is 7 per cent more effective than coal or oil based plants and 10 per cent more effective than nuclear plants. It is generally used more in appliances like heaters, crop dryers, cookers, etc. The western part of India has greater potential for the development of solar energy in Gujarat and Rajasthan.

Question 6. How is geothermal energy tapped? OR What is the source of geothermal energy? Answer: When the magma from the interior of earth, comes out on the surface, tremendous heat is released. This heat energy can successfully be tapped and converted to electrical energy. Apart from this, the hot water that gushes out through the geyser wells is also used in the generation of thermal energy. It is popularly known as Geothermal energy. This energy is now considered to be one of the key energy sources which can be developed as an alternate source. The hot springs and geysers are being used since medieval period.

Question 7. Name the agencies involved in exploration of minerals. Answer: Geological Survey of India (GSI), Oil and Natural Gas Commission (ONGC), Mineral Exploration Corporation Ltd. (MECL), National Mineral Development Corporation (NMDC), Indian Bureau of Mines (IBM), Bharat Gold Mines Ltd. (BGML), Hindustan Copper Ltd. (HCL), National Aluminium Company Ltd. (NALCO) and the Departments of Mining and Geology undertake systematic surveying, prospecting and exploration for minerals in various states.

Question 8. Where are majority of petroleum reserves found? Answer: Petroleum reserves are located in the sedimentary basins of Assam, Gujarat and Mumbai High, i.e. off-shore region in the Arabian Sea. New reserves have been located in the Krishna-Godavari and Kaveri basins.

Question 9. Write the uses of petroleum. Answer: Uses of petroleum are as follows:

Essential source of energy for all internal combustion engines in automobiles, railways and aircrafts.
By-products are processed in petro chemical industries such as fertilisers, synthetic rubber, synthetic fibre, medicines, vaseline, lubricants wax, soap and cosmeti.

Question 10. Give the distribution of petroleum reserves in India. Answer:

Crude petroleum occurs in sedimentary rocks of the tertiary period.
Before 1956, Digboi in Assam was the only oil producing region. But now in Assam, Digboi, Naharkatiya and Moran are important. Oilfields of Gujarat are Ankleshwar, Mehsana, etc.
Mumbai High which lies 160 km off Mumbai was discovered in 1973.
Natural gas have been found in exploratory wells in Krishna-Godavari a!nd Kaveri basin on the east coast.

Question 11. Name the important belts of mineral reserves in India. Answer:. Minerals are generally concentrated in three broad belts in India.

The North-Eastern Plateau Region: Chotanagpur (Jharkhand), Odisha Plateau, West Bengal and parts of Chhattisgarh.
The South-Western Plateau Region: Karnataka, Goa and contiguous Tamil Nadu uplands and Kerala.
The North-Western Region: Aravali in Rajasthan and part of Gujarat

Question 12. Name the minerals which are found in South-Western plateau region belt of India. Answer: This belt extends over Karnataka, Goa and contiguous Tamil Nadu uplands and Kerala. This belt is rich in ferrous metals and bauxite. It also contains high grade iron ore, manganese and limestone. This belt packs in coal deposits except Neyveli lignite. Kerala has deposits of monazite and thorium, bauxite clay. Goa has iron ore deposits.

Question 13. Write the uses and distribution of mica. Answer: Uses:

Di-electric property
Voltage resistant distribution Distribution: Jharkhand, Andhra Pradesh and Rajasthan followed by Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, M.P. and Nellore district have the best quality mica.

Question 14. What are the features of minerals? Answer: Minerals have certain features:

They are either organic like fossil fuels or inorganic like mica, limestone, etc.
There is an inverse relationship iri quality and quantity of minerals i.e., good quality minerals are less in quantity as compared to low quality minerals.
They contain either iron like iron ore or don’t have iron content like copper, bauxite, etc.
These minerals take long time to develop geologically and they cannot be replenished immediately at the time of need.
All minerals are exhaustible over time. None of the minerals is a renewable source but many of them can be recycled and re-used.

Question 15. Mention the uses of manganese and its producing states. Answer: Uses:

Manganese is an important raw material for smelting of iron ore.
It is also used for manufacturing ferro alloys.

Manganese Producing states:

Manganese deposits are found in almost all geological formations, however, it is mainly associated with Dharwar system.
Odisha is the leading producer of manganese. Here major mines are located in the cefttral part of the iron ore belt of India, particularly in Bonai, Kendujhar, Sundergarh, Gangpur, Koraput, Kalahandi and Bolangir.
Karnataka is an another major producer and here the mines are located in Dharwar, Bellary, Belgaum, North Canara, Chikmagalur, Shimoga, Chitradurg and Tumkur.
Maharashtra is also an important producer of manganese which is mined in Nagpur, Bhandara and Ratnagiri districts.
Andhra Pradesh, Goa, and Jharkhand are other minor producers of manganese.

Question 16. Why is it necessary to develop bio-energy in India? Answer: Bio-energy is a potential source of energy conversion. It can be converted into electrical energy, heat energy or gas for cooking. Necessity for India:

It will also process the waste and garbage and produce energy.
This will improve economic life of rural areas in developing countries.
It will reduce environmental pollution.
It will enhance self-reliance.
It will reduce pressure on fuel wood.

Question 17. Classify minerals based on chemical and physical properties. Explain them. Answer: On the basis of chemical and physical properties, minerals may be grouped under two main categories of metallics and non-metallics. Metallic minerals are the sources of metals. Iron ore, copper, gold produce metal and are included in this category. Non-metallic minerals are either organic in origin such as fossil fuels also known as mineral fuels which are derived from the buried animal and plant life such as coal and petroleum. Other type of non-metallic minerals are inorganic in origin such as mica, limestone and graphite, etc.

Class 12 Geography Chapter 7 Long Answer Type Questions

Question 1. Why is conservation of resources essential? Suggest steps to conserve minerals. Answer: In order to achieve economic development with least environmental impact, the goals of sustainable development must be kept in mind in order to protect the future generations. There is an urgent need to conserve the resources.

The alternative energy sources like solar power, wind, wave, geothermal energy are inexhaustible resource. These should be developed to replace the exhaustible resources.
In case of metallic minerals, use of scrap metals will enable recycling of metals. Use of scrap is specially significant in metals like copper, lead and zinc in which India’s reserves are meagre.
Use of substitutes for scarce metals may also reduce their consumption.
Export of strategic and scarce minerals must be reduced, so that the existing reserve may be used for a longer period.

Question 2. Describe the development of nuclear energy in India and challenges in its growth. Answer: Nuclear energy has emerged as a viable source in recent times.

Important minerals used for the generation of nuclear energy are uranium and thorium.
Uranium deposits occur in the Dharwar rocks. These are known to occur in several locations along the Singbhum Copper belt. It is also found in Udaipur, Alwar and Jhunjhunu districts of Rajasthan, Durg district of Chhattisgarh, Bhandara district of Maharashtra and Kullu district of Himachal Pradesh.
Thorium is mainly obtained from monazite and lignite in the sands of beach along the coasts of Kerala and Tamil Nadu.
World’s richest monazite deposits occur in Palakkad and Kollam districts ofKerala, near Vishakhapatnam in Andhra Pradesh and Mahanadi river delta in Odisha.

Question 3. Write a note on the three belts of mineral distribution. Answer: Minerals are generally concentrated in three broad belts in India. These belts are:

The North-Eastern Plateau Region: This belt covers Chhotanagpur (Jharkhand), Odisha Plateau, West Bengal and parts of Chhattisgarh. It has variety of minerals—iron ore, coal, manganese, bauxite, mica.
The South-Western Plateau Region: This belt extends from Karnataka, Goa and contiguous Tamil Nadu uplands and Kerala. It is rich in ferrous metals and bauxite. It also contains high grade iron ore, manganese and limestone. This belt lacks in coal deposits except Neyveli lignite. Kerala has deposits of monazite and thorium, bauxite clay. Goa has iron ore deposits.
The North-Western Region: This belt extends along Aravali in Rajasthan and part of Gujarat and minerals are associated with Dharwar system of rocks. Copper, zinc have been major minerals. Rajasthan is rich in building stones i.e. sandstone, granite, marble. Gypsum and Fuller’s earth deposits are also extensive. Dolomite and limestone provide raw materials for cement industiy. Gujarat is known for its petroleum deposits. Gujarat and Rajasthan have rich sources of salt. The Himalayan belt: It is another mineral belt where copper, lead, zinc, cobalt and tungsten are known to occur. Assam valley has mineral oil deposits.Oil resources are also found in off-shore- areas near Mumbai Coast (Mumbai High).

Question 4. Where does India stand as far as iron resource is concerned? Write a note on its distribution. Answer: India is endowed with fairly abundant resources of iron ore. It has the largest reserve of iron ore in Asia. About 95 per cent of total reserves of iron ore is located in the States of Odisha, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Karnataka, Goa, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu. In Odisha, iron ore occurs in a series of hill ranges in Sundergarh, Mayurbhanj and Jhar. The important mines are Gurumahisani, Sulaipet, Badampahar (Mayurbhaj), Kiruburu (Kendujhar) and Bonai (Sundergarh).

Jharkhand has some of the oldest iron ore mines and most of the iron and steel plants are located around them. Most of the important mines such as Noamundi and Gua are located in Poorbi and Pashchimi Singhbhum districts. This belt further extends to Durg, Dantewara and Bailadila. Dalli, and Rajhara in Durg are the important mines of iron ore in the country. In Karnataka, iron ore deposits occur in Sandur-Hospet area of Ballari district, Baba Budan hills and Kudremukh in Chikkamagaluru district and parts of Shivamogga, Chitradurg and Tumakuru districts.

The districts of Chandrapur, Bhandara and Ratnagiri in Maharashtra, Karimnagar and Warangal district of Telangana, Kurnool, Cuddapah and Anantapur districts of Andhra Pradesh, Salem and Nilgiris districts of Tamil Nadu are other iron mining regions. Goa has also emerged as an important producer of iron ore.

Class 12 Geography Chapter 7 Differentiates

Question 1. Distinguish between conventional & non conventional sources of energy. Answer:

Conventional energy	Non Conventional energy
(i) This energy is in use for a long period of time.	(i) These sources have been recently introduced on a commercial scale.
(ii) Fossil fuel sources, such as coal, petroleum, natural gas and nuclear energy are the main sources.	(ii) Solar, wind, hydro, geothermal and biomass are the main sources.
(iii) These are exhaustible raw materials	(iii) These are sustainable energy resources- which are inexhaustible sources of energy.
(iv) These are concentrated in particular locations and are limited.	(iv) These energy sources are more equitably distributed and are abundant in nature.
(v) These sources cause pollution and harm the environment.	(v) They are environmental friendly. They provide more sustained, eco-friendly cheaper energy after the initial cost is taken care of.
(vi) Both the construction and running cost is high.	(vi) Initial cost is high but the running cost is low.

Question 2. Differentiate between ferrous and non-ferrous minerals. Answer:

Basis	Ferrous Minerals	Non-ferrous Minerals
Meaning	Ferrous mineral refers to iron. All those minerals which have iron content are called ferrous minerals.	Those minerals which do not have iron content are non-ferrous.
Example	Iron ore itself, manganese, chromite, etc.	Copper, bauxite, iron, gold, etc.

Question 3. Differentiate the coal on the basis of geological ages. Answer:

Tertiary Deposits

Gondwana Deposits

(a) 55 million years of formation

(b) It is found in Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya and Nagaland.

(a) 200 million years old.

(b) It is located in Damador Valley and lie in Jharkhand, Bengal coal belt.

Class 12 Geography Chapter 7 Higher Order Thinking Skills (HOTS)

Question 1. Nuclear energy is the hope of future in India. Give a few points. Answer: Nuclear energy is the hope of future in India. It is justified because:

India is deficient in mineral oil and its ‘ coal reserves would also exhaust soon.
India has not been able to develop the potential of hydel power to such extent that it may depend on it fully because of some constraints.
Technical know-how to harness nuclear energy is available.
This power can play a complementary role in industrial and agricultural development in India.
Availability of sufficient reserves of nuclear minerals like uranium and thorium.

Class 12 Geography Chapter 7 Map Based Questions

Class 12 Geography NCERT Solutions Chapter 7 Mineral and Energy Resources Map Based Questions Q1

Class 12 Geography Chapter 7 Important Questions

Very Short Answer Type Questions

Question 1. Name the place of Maharashtra, where an atomic power station is located. (A.I. 2010) Answer: Tarapur.

Question 2. Name the place of Himachal Pradesh where a geothermal energy plant is located. (Foreign 2010) Answer: Manikaran.

Question 3. Classify minerals on the basis of chemical and physical properties. (A.I. 2017) Answer: Classification of minerals:

Non-metallic

Short Answer Type Questions:

Question 1. Distinguish between thermal electricity and hydro-electricity by stating three points. (CBSE 2006, 15) Answer: Thermal electricity:

Electricity which is produced by fossil fuel as coal, petroleum and natural gas.
The source of generation of thermal power is available in sizeable amount.
The thermal electricity plant has an adverse impact on the environment.

Hydro-electricity:

Electricity which is produced by water.
The source of generation of hydro¬electricity are renewable and abundant in size.
The hydro-electricity plant is environment friendly.

Question 2. Give two advantages of wind energy. Mention four states of India having favourable conditions for the development of wind energy. (CBSE 2008,13) Answer: Two advantages:

Wind energy is absolutely pollution free, inexhaustible sources of energy.
The kinetic energy of wind, through turbines is converted into electric energy.

Four states of India having favorable condition of wind energy:

Maharashtra and
Karnataka & Tamil-Nadu.

Question 3. Electricity is one of the greatest inventions of all times. It is mostly generated by using coal, natural gas and petroleum, which are exhaustable resources. Can you imagine the human society without electricity? This may happen in future, when all energy resources will be exhausted. Explain the values that can change this possible darkness scenario. (A.I. 2015) Answer: Mineral fuels like coal, petroleum, natural gas and nuclear energy are the conventional sources of energy. They are exhaustible. Sustainable energy resources are renewable. These resources can help us in future after taking great care of these resources. Even then we should kept in mind certain thing to avoid such situation:

Creating awareness among the masses about sustainable sources of energy.
To develop sustainable sources of energy.
Maximum use of renewable energy resources such as solar, wind, biomass and hydro electricity.
Optimum use of energy resources and minimum wastage.
Alternative energy sources like solar power, wind, wave, geothermal etc. are to be developed.

Question 3. “The promotion of the use of non- conventional sources of energy in India is the need of the hour.” Support the statement. (Delhi 2016) Answer:

Non-conventional energy sources are highly valuable.
They are the renewable energy sources like solar, wind, hydro, geothermal and biomass.
These energy sources are more equally distributed.
They are environmental friendly.
Non-conventional energy sources will provide more sustained energy.
They are also cheaper energy sources after the initial cost is taken care of.

Question 4. Explain the significance of bio-energy to human kind in India. (A.I. 2016) Answer:

Bio-energy is a potential source of energy conversion.
It can be converted into electrical enegy, heat energy or gas for cooking.
This will improve economic life of rural areas in the country.
It reduces environment pollution, enhance self-reliance and reduce pressure on fuel wood.

Long Answer Type Questions:

Question 1. Which are the two main ferrous minerals found in India? Describe four characteristics of each. (Foreign 2009) Answer: Iron ore and Manganese are the two main ferrous minerals found in India. Characteristics of iron ore:

Haematite and magnetite are the two main types of iron ore found in our countiy.
Due to its superior quality, it has great demand in international market.
It occurs in close proximity to the coal fields.
It provides a strong base for the development of metallurgical industries. Characteristics of Manganeses:
It is an important raw material for smelting of iron ore.
It is used for manufacturing ferro alloys,
It is mainly associated with Dharwar system.
It is used in making glass and steel.

Question 2. Name five sources of non-conventional energy in India and also state one potential area of each source of non- conventional energy. (CBSE 2008, 13) Answer: Light from sun, tidal waves, winds, biogas and geothermal energy are non- conventional sources of energy. The non- conventional sources are cheap and can be tapped easily. They are pollution free as they do not have smoke or ash when used. They have no environmental hazards,

Solar Energy: India is a tropical country so sunlight is abundantly available in all the parts of country except north¬eastern India. Solar energy is used for cooking, water heating and space heating. Solar cooker water pumps, road lights, telephone etc. are being operated by solar energy.
Wind Energy: Tamil Nadu, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Odisha are using wind energy. Effort is being made to develop wind generators, wind mills, battery charging system.
Geothermal Energy: Development activities related to a cold storage unit and 5kw power plant both based on geothermal energy at Manikaram (HP) are in full progress.
Biogas: It is most important renewable sources of energy in rural areas. As by-product a biogas plant produces enriched the fertilizer. It is used as cooking fuel and also used for lighting and power generation.
Tidal Energy: Oceanic tide can be used to generate electricity food gate dams are built across inlets. During high tide water flows into the inlets and gate trapped, when the gate is closed. Gulf of Kachchh provides ideal condition for utilizing tidal energy.

Question 3. ‘The non-conventional sources of energy will provide more sustained, eco-friendly and cheaper energy if the initial cost is taken care of.” Examine the statement. (CBSE 2018) Answer: Non-conventional sources of energy:

Non-conventional energy sources are solar, wind, tidal, geothermal and biomass. All these sources are sustainable.
These are more equitably distributed.
They are eco-friendly.
In the long run they are cost effective.
Wind energy like other non-conventional sources of energy is absolutely pollution free.
Ocean currents are store house of infinite energy.
Bio-energy is also a potential source of energy. It reduces pressure on fuel wood and saves forests as well.
Geothermal energy can successfully be tapped, converted to electrical energy and can be developed as an effective source of energy.

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Hydel Power – Advantages & Disadvantages

The electricity that is generated from water is known as hydel power or hydroelectricity. It is generated when water stored in a dam falls from a great height on a turbine whose blades then move with a great force. This, in turn, rotates the generator and produces electricity. The hydropower projects are multipurpose projects because they are used for irrigation, water supply for domestic and industrial consumption and to control floods.

Advantages of Hydel power

It is a clean, non-polluting source of energy. It does not release any toxic gases. Natural Gas, Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG), Compressed Natural Gas (CNG)
It is a renewable source of energy that can be repeatedly used.
The dams built to produce hydroelectricity help in saving and restoring water.
It is economic and sustainable. The cost of electricity generation is cheaper than the electricity produced from fossil fuels and nuclear power.

Disadvantages of Hydel Power

The initial cost for building dams for generating hydroelectricity is extremely high.
Building large dams result in the destruction and submergence of forests on a large scale.
The building of huge dams may trigger earthquakes in an area.
Dam building may displace people from their villages. They may also lose their source of livelihood.

Bhakra Nangal Dam

This project is a joint venture of the Punjab, Haryana, and Rajasthan governments. The Bhakra Dam is the second-highest dam in India. Gobind Sagar is the name of the reservoir of the Bhakra dam. With a storage capacity of 9.3 billion cubic meters, it is the third-largest water reservoir in India. The Bhakra- Nangal project comprises of the following :

The Bhakra Dam: It is the second-highest and the third largest water reservoir in India.
The Nangal Dam: It is constructed at Nangal at river Satluj in Punjab. It supplies water to the Bhakra irrigation canal.
Power Houses : There are four powerhouses.
Provides water for irrigation
Generate hydro-electricity
Prevent flooding from Sutlej-Beas rivers

Hirakud Dam

This dam is built across the river Mahanadi. It was one of the earliest multipurpose river projects that started after independence. Its construction was completed in 1953. It is the longest major earthen dam in Asia. The dam also forms the biggest artificial lake in Asia. There are two observational towers on the dam at each side. One is Gandhi Minar and the other is Nehru Minar.

Benefits of the Hirakud Dam

The dam helps control floods in the Mahanadi delta ad irrigates 75,000 sq. km of land. The Bhakra – Nangal Project The Bhakra dam Power Houses Bhakra canal system The Nangal dam
The project provides irrigation to the ‘kharif’ and ‘rabi’ crops in districts of Sambalpur, Bargarh, Bolangir and Subarnpur.
The dam can generate upto 307.5 MW of electrical power through its two power plants at Burla and Chiplima.
Moreover, the project provides flood protection to 9, 5000 km2 of delta area in districts of Cuttack and Puri.

Also, Read Natural Gas – Advantages & Disadvantages

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NCERT Solutions for Class 12 Geography Chapter 7 Mineral and Energy Resources

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NCERT Solutions for Class 12 Geography Chapter 7 - Mineral and Energy Resources

NCERT Solutions
Mineral and Energy Resources

Question 1:

Which out of the following states has major oil fields?

Question 2:

On which station out of the following, the first atomic station was set up?

Rana Partap Sagar

(d) Tarapur

Question 3:

Out of the following, which mineral is called ‘Brown diamond’?

Question 4:

Which is the non-renewable source of energy?

Question 5:

Give an account of the distribution of Mica in India.

Mica in India is produced in Jharkhand, Andhra Pradesh and Rajasthan followed by Tamil Nadu, West Bengal and Madhya Pradesh. (1) In Jharkhand, high quality mica is obtained in a belt extending over a distance of about 150 km, in length and about 22 km, in width in lower Hazaribagh plateau. (2) In Andhra Pradesh, Nellore district produces the best quality mica. (3) In Rajasthan, mica belt extends for about 320 kms from Jaipur to Bhilwara and around Udaipur. (4) Mica deposits also occur in Mysore and Hasan districts of Karanataka. (5) Coimbatore, Tiruchirapalli, Madurai, and Kanniyakumari in Tamil Nadu, Alleppey in Kerala. (6) Ratnagiri in Maharasthra. (7) Purulia and Bankura in West Bengal.

Question 6:

What is Nuclear power? Mention the important nuclear power stations in India.

Nuclear power is generated by splitting atomic minerals like Uranium and Thorium. This is known as atomic fission. The Atomic Energy Commission was established in 1948 in India. There are four atomic power stations in India. (1) Tarapur (Maharashtra) (2) Rana Pratap Sagar (Kota) (3) Kalpakkam (Chennai) (4) Narora (Uttar Pradesh) Two atomic stations at Kakarpara (Gujarat) and Kaiga (Karnataka) are at planning stage.

Question 7:

Name two non-ferrous metal. Discuss their spatial distribution.

Copper. India is deficient in copper and has to depend on foreign supplies. The total reserves are estimated at 570 million tonnes. The annual production in 2013–13 was 3639 thousand tonnes.

Areas of production. Copper occurs in crystalline rocks in the peninsular plateau.

Jharkhand: Singhbhum district (Mosabani, Rakha, Dhobani mines)
Madhya Pradesh: Balaghat.
Rajasthan: Jhunjhunu (Khetri area) and Koh Dariba in Alwar.
Other areas: Khamman (Andhra), Hassan and Chitradurga (Karnataka), Sikkim, Kulu (Himachal Pradesh).
Bauxite. Bauxite is the ore which is used in manufacturing of aluminium. Bauxite is found mainly in tertiary deposits and is associated with laterite rocks occurring extensively either on the plateau or hill ranges of peninsular India and also in the coastal tracts of the country. The production of Bauxite in 2012–13 was 15360 thousand tonnes.

Areas of Production: Odisha happens to be the largest producer of Bauxite (about 36% share in total production). Kalahandi and Sambalpur are the leading producers. The other two areas which have been increasing their production are Bolangir and Koraput. The patlands of Jharkhand in Lohardaga have rich deposits. Gujarat (20%), Chhattisgarh (12%), Madhya Pradesh (5%) and Maharashtra (13%) are other major producers. Bhavanagar, Jamnagar in Gujarat have the major deposits. Chhattisgarh has bauxite deposits in Amarkantak plateau while Katni-Jabalpur area and Balaghat in Madhya Pradesh have important deposits of bauxite. Colaba, Thane, Ratnagiri, Satara, Pune and Kolhapur in Maharashtra are important producers. Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Goa are minor producers of bauxite.

Question 8:

What are non-conventional sources of energy?

Solar energy, Wind power, Geo-Thermal, Biomass and Tidal energy are unconventional sources of energy.

Question 9:

Write a detailed note on the Petroleum resources of India.

Petroleum. Petroleum is the most important source of power in the present age. Many by-products such as kerosene, fuel, lubricating oils, grease, coke and asphalt are obtained from petroleum. Petro-chemical products have become very useful. Petroleum is used in agriculture industry, transport, paints, perfumes, cosmetics, etc. It is the source of foreign exchange for many oil exporting countries. So, it is rightly called the ‘liquid gold’.

Production. In about 10 lakh sq. km. oil bearing rocks are found in India. The oil reserves in India are estimated to be 50 crore metric tonnes. The first oil field in India was discovered in 1867 at Makum in Assam. At present the production is as under:

Assam. In Assam, oil is produced in Digboi, Moran, Naharkatiya and Sibsagar regions.
Gujarat. In Gujarat, oil is produced in Gulf of Cambay region at Kalol. Ankleshwar, Lunej, etc.
Maharasthra. Oil has struck in the off-shore region at Mumbai High along the coast of Mumbai. It is the leading producer of crude oil in India. North Bassein and South Bassein are the important oil fields.

The production of oil in India is increasing everywhere under the organisation of Oil and Natural Gas Commission. The production of oil in India rose from 26 lakh tonnes in 1951 to 182 lakh tonnes in 1982-83. It was estimated to be about 320 lakh tonnes in 2015. India meets about 40% of its demands by home production. We import crude oil and other petroleum products from foreign countries. There are at present 12 oil refineries in India. These refineries are expanded to meet the increasing requirements of the country. It will help in saving a large amount of foreign exchange.

Oil-Refineries. There are already 12 refineries in the country. These refineries include (i) Barauni (Bihar) (ii) Mumbai (Maharashtra) (iii) Cochin (Kerala) (iv) Digboi (Assam) (v) Guwahati (Assam) (vi) Haldia (West Bengal) (vii) Vishakhaptnam (Andhra Pradesh) (viii) Koyali (Gujarat) (ix) Chennai (Tamil Nadu) (x) Mathura (U.P.) (xi) Karnal (Haryana) (to be set up) (xii) Kochi. Two refineries by H.P.C.L. and B.P.C.L. have been set up at Mumbai. ONGC has set up a refinery at Tatipacca (Andhra Pradesh). The largest oil refinery has been set up at Jamnagar by Reliance Petroleum limited.

Question 10:

Write an essay on hydel power in India.

Hydel power. Hydel power is an inexhuastible resource. It is a permanent resource as compared to coal and oil. Resources such as coal and oil will exhaust in time but water-power will remain forever.

In recent years water-power is becoming more and more important in the industrial economy. It has many advantages over fossil fuels of coal and oil. The use of water-power is increasing with an aim of conserving coal and petroleum.

Water-Power (Hydel Power) in India. In India, the first power house was set up at Siva Samudram (Karnataka) on the river Cauvery in 1902. After independence, many power projects were started to develop hydro-electricity under multipurpose projects. But some projects are exclusively hydel power projects. Western Ghats, Tamil Nadu region and Himalayan region have favourable conditions for development of water power.

The power that could be generated, if all the water resources of a country are used, is called potential waterpower. India has a potential waterpower of 40 million kilowatts. India stands fifth in the world in potential power resources. This high potential power is due to favourable geographical conditions of rainfall, relief, waterfalls. Most of developed water power is in the northern India because it has high rainfall, large rivers, regular supply of water and demand due to industrial development. The Northern India has high mountains which provide waterfall suitable for power generation. In 2007, Hydro-electricity generated was 74.5 billion kwh.

The Rihand Project is the largest man-made lake in India on the borders of Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh. It has the capacity to produce 300 MW. power every year.
The Koyna Project in Maharashtra is on an east flowing tributary of the Krishna. A dam on the Koyna had been built only to take water through a tunnel to the western slopes of the Ghats. Its capacity is 880 MW. It feeds power to Mumbai-Pune industrial region.
The Sharavati Project in Karnataka is located at the Jog Falls, the highest in India. Its total capacity is 891 MW. Besides Bangalore industrial region, it supplies electricity to the states of Goa and Tamil Nadu.
Kalinadi Project in Karnataka had 270 MW capacity.
The Kundoh Project in Tamil Nadu had initially 435 MW capacity which has been expanded lately to 535 MW.
The Sabargiri Project in Kerala has an installed capacity of 300 MW while the Idukki Project has a capacity of 390 MW.
The Balimel Project in Odisha has an installed capacity of 360 MW and in Gujarat Ukai Project has a capacity of 300 MW.
Salal Hydel Power Project (J & K) has been completed and the new ones are being taken up. They together would provide over a 1000 MW of power.
Chukha Project (Bhutan). Besides these power projects, India constructed a very big hydel power project in Bhutan at Chukha. It was financed by India. The surplus energy is bought by India for its use in the north-eastern parts of the country including West Bengal.
Tehri Hydel Power Project. It is a joint project of the Government of India and Uttarakhand state. Tehri Hydro development corporation was set up in 1988. The aim is to generate 2400 MW of power and irrigate 27000 Hectares. There have been many hindrances to the start of this project due to deterioration of environment and the dangers due to this seismic zone.

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Vol 2, April 2022 | Does hydel have a role in India’s decarbonisation plans?

write an essay on hydel power in india class 12

Does hydel have a role in India’s decarbonisation plans?

The NDA govt is looking at hydel power to balance the grid as it moves away from coal, but as past attempts have proven, this will be easier said than done Read more

Testing the waters: The BJP-headed NDA government want to push India’s installed hydel capacity to 70,000 MW by 2030—a 50% jump from the current 45,700 MW. Photo: Pixabay

The NDA govt is looking at hydel power to balance the grid as it moves away from coal, but as past attempts have proven, this will be easier said than done. This is part one of a three-part series.

Once again, India is in the throes of a dam-building enthusiasm. Not only are old, stranded projects being revived, newer ones are being commissioned as well.

Just last year, the BJP-led NDA government announced fresh dams in Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh . In Sikkim, there is speculation that a 520 MW hydel project at Dzongu will be revived. In Kashmir, so many dams are being built that the region’s hydel power output will double from the existing 3,504 MW to 7,001 MW.

The biggest of these pushes, however, is in Arunachal Pradesh. In December, 2021, the Union power ministry sanctioned 29 hydel projects—adding up to 32,415 MW —in the state.

But hidden underneath these announcements is a state-financed gamble over hydel’s role in India’s decarbonisation.

As the pressure to cut emissions rises, India will struggle to add new thermal power plants. At the same time, alternatives to coal-based power are still imperfect. Renewables are cheap, but not available all day. Gas, as CarbonCopy has reported, is too expensive to be competitive. Nuclear is too small in scale—and, as agitations like Kudankulam showed—runs into intense opposition.

That leaves hydel power. It, however, is costlier than solar. And so, instead of having it compete with low solar tariffs, the NDA government wants to use hydel for peak power and grid-stabilisation. “Renewables come with intermittency and so we will need hydel to balance the grid,” said Vinay Shrivastava, a former executive director (western region) of India’s Power System Operation Corporation (POSOCO), a state-owned enterprise, which manages India’s electricity grid.

And so, not only does the BJP-headed NDA government want to push India’s installed hydel capacity to 70,000 MW by 2030 —a 50% jump from the current 45,700 MW—it’s also readying a large push on pumped storage. As energy minister RK Singh told the Economic Times , the NDA has also identified 63 projects adding up to a generating capacity of 96,000 MW.

Hard-wired into this push, however, is a bet that hydel can hold its own against emerging storage technologies like battery energy storage systems (BESS) and electrolysers.

India pushes hydel again

This is not the first time India is trying to amp up its hydel power capacity. In 2003, too, the country had announced an ambitious plan—to treble its hydel power capacity.

At a time when India’s dams produced a little over 26,000 MW, the then-ruling NDA government, headed by Atal Behari Vajpayee, said it would set up 162 new hydel projects, adding up to 50,000 MW by 2012 .

That number climbed higher still. A clutch of states signed more MoUs than they needed to. Uttaranchal, meant to add 5,282 MW of fresh capacity, signed MoUs for 27,450 MW. Arunachal Pradesh, set a target of 27,000 MW, signed MoUs for 43,118 MW . Sikkim, given 1,469 MW, signed MoUs for 5,284 MW .

Himachal Pradesh, which was expected to add 15 projects adding up to 3,328 MW , signed MoUs for 53 projects in one part of the state alone— Kinnaur . By 2014, it had plans for as much as 13,813 MW of fresh capacity.

A speculative bubble had formed. Attracted by the prospect of owning a hydel project—with its promises of low running costs and government-mandated fat margins—construction companies and other newcomers to the energy sector were clamouring to get in. Knowing most of these projects wouldn’t come up, but seeing an opportunity for rent-extraction, political parties in power states such as Arunachal Pradesh and Uttaranchal began charging for MoUs—even with untested companies —and commissioned as many dams as they could.

By 2013, Arunachal Pradesh had signed MoUs for 153 dams. To put that number in perspective, the state has just four major river basins—Subansiri, Lohit, Siang and Kameng.

What happened next is well known. Pushed without considering their social, environmental or even economic feasibility, most of these dams never got made. Work began on some, but halted due to local opposition. Others never started construction due to the absence of necessary infrastructure such as roads and transmission lines. Others, signed by speculators hoping to offload MoUs to serious players, found themselves scuppered as buyers wisened up.

In all, each state failed to add the capacity than its MoUs promised, and India missed Vajpayee’s target as well.

identified capacity vs developed capacity

Vajpayee had wanted the country to add 50,000 MW by “ the 12 th Five Year Plan ”–2012. In reality, the country added just 12,223 MW . Little changed in the eight years that followed. As a 2020 report in Hindu BusinessLine says: “Only about 10,000 MW of hydropower could be added over the last 10 years,” taking India’s installed hydel power capacity to 45,700 MW.

A battle over storage

Today, as the country tries again, it has jettisoned parts of the old approach.

For a start, projects are being given not to the private sector, but to public sector undertakings (PSUs).

The 29 projects coming up in Arunachal Pradesh, for instance, have been shared between India’s four hydro PSUs—National Hydel Power Corporation (NHPC), North East Electric Power Corporation (NEEPCO), THDC (formerly, Tehri Hydro Development Corporation) and SYVN (Satluj Jal Vidyut Nigam)—with each getting a river basin.

In Kashmir, too, all MoUs have been signed with NHPC. “We are back to PSU-driven development in the hydel sector,” said Jayant Kawale, a former head of Jindal Steel and Power’s hydel unit.

In addition, large hydel projects have given renewable energy status enabling new projects, as joint secretary AK Verma wrote in Hindu BusinessLine, to “receive concessions and green financing available to RE projects”.

To ensure hydel still has buyers—despite solar’s lower tariffs—the NDA has introduced Hydel Purchase Obligations . Like the Renewable Power Obligations, which compelled DISCOMs to buy solar and wind, these push hydel. “Everyone wants to schedule the cheapest power,” said Shrivastava. “With so much infra cost, if the cost of hydel is Rs4, the cost of solar is Rs2. No state will buy hydro. If some state has put up 2,000 MW of hydel, it will become a NPA [non-performing asset].”

In tandem, the debt repayment period for dams has been hiked from 12 years to 18 years and their project life has been extended to 40 years—both give promoters more time to retire loans, and ergo, make lower tariffs possible.

That said, even if some old challenges have been addressed, others persist. These include social, environmental, geological, geopolitical (China) and infrastructural challenges that dam-building runs into.

And then, there are newer challenges. India’s pushing hydel storage at a time when the world is making a big push on rival storage technologies like batteries and electrolysers.

Hydroelectric Role in India decarbonisation plans

India, too, has sanctioned a 50 GW PLI scheme for batteries. Central government agencies are projecting BESS installations for the grid at 27 GW by 2030.

Firms like Reliance are trying to produce cheap electrolysers. In addition, India has provisionally settled on a 5 GW target for electrolyser manufacturing by 2030 – with caveats that this might rise.

Think about it. India’s installed capacity of solar and wind is about 175 GW right now. The country wants to push renewables to 500 GW by 2030. At that level, said Shrivastava, India will “need as much as 85 GW of storage to balance the grid”.

India’s planned 96 GW of pumped hydro—and its projected 70 GW capacity comprising multipurpose dams and run of the river projects—will have to compete with newer forms of storage for this 85 GW space.

The resulting interplays are still evolving. On one hand, batteries and electrolysers are yet to be deployed at scale. On the other hand, hydel is a mature technology with little scope for dramatic cost reduction. Within hydel itself, pumped storage, run-of-the-river and multi-purpose projects come with different competitive advantages.

These two interplays—with storage, and within hydel—will determine hydel’s role in India’s emerging energy architecture.

(Next week: Can hydel take on batteries and electrolysers?)

Climate Science

In deep water: Storage levels in 140 major reservoirs have fallen to 39% of their cumulative capacity as of April 21, 2022 | Photo: Down To Earth

140 major reservoirs in India record dip amidst intense heatwave, deficient pre-monsoon rain

The intense heatwave that has gripped India coupled with deficient pre-monsoon rainfall has led to a significant dip in the country’s major reservoirs. According to data released by the Central Water Commission (CWC), storage levels in 140 major reservoirs as of April 21, 2022 have fallen to 39% of their cumulative capacity compared to 50% on March 17, 2022. This translates into a dip of about 2-3% per week.

According to data released by the India Meteorological Department (IMD), pre-monsoon rainfall as of April 19 fell in the ‘large deficient’ category. The data revealed the subdivisions of East Uttar Pradesh and Saurashtra and Kutch have had no rainfall since March 1, Madhya Maharashtra and Arunachal Pradesh had normal rainfall, and only eight subdivisions recorded ‘large excess’ rainfall.

Torrential rain, flooding kills 450 in South Africa

Relentless rain and floods in South Africa killed around 450 people and rendered thousands homeless this month. The president of South Africa, Cyril Ramaphosa, linked the storm, which delivered an entire year’s worth of rainfall in 48 hours, to climate change. The region has already been hit by multiple tropical storms and cyclones since the beginning of the year.

According to experts, the enormous death toll of 450 people was a result of the lack of infrastructure, a communication breakdown and an abundance of informal settlements. Even though the South African Weather Service forecast the flooding a day in advance, no red alert was issued. The event highlighted the issue of climate justice as well. According to Debra Roberts, co-chair of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report on climate impacts, the poor had been hit the hardest by the weather event.

Study links rising heat to longer, more intense seasonal allergies

Warmer temperatures have increased the duration of the spring season causing flowers to bloom earlier, according to a study published in the journal Nature. The pollen season, therefore, now begins 10-40 days earlier and ends 5-15 days later, the study stated. This has resulted in a longer and more i ntense allergy season for those affected, according to the researchers. The increase in atmospheric CO2 is pushing up pollen production. This means seasonal allergies are only likely to increase in the coming years.

Climate Policy

Greening the grays: RBI suggests carbon capture technology to curb growing cement production emissions | Photo: Hindustan Times

RBI pushes for ‘green’ tech such as CCS to reduce emissions in cement industry

A recent Reserve Bank of India (RBI) report recommended technological interventions such as carbon capture to tackle rising emissions in the cement industry. The report highlighted the “exciting opportunities” for the cement sector with regards to green technology. India is the second-largest cement producer and consumer, second to China. It accounts for over eight percent of the global installed capacity which is only expected to grow. According to the report, government schemes such as the National Infrastructure Pipeline, Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana, and the SMART cities mission are likely to push up the demand for cement.

Exxon estimates carbon capture will become $4 trillion market by 2050

Exxon Mobil Corp, meanwhile, estimated the carbon capture will become a $4 trillion market by 2050 . This comes up to about 60% of the company’s 2050 estimate for oil and gas. Oil companies have been looking to make carbon capture technology (CCS) a lucrative business, and it has also received an endorsement from the IPCC, which stated the technology is key to mitigating climate change.

India plans to launch own uniform carbon trading market in a year

India is planning to launch its own uniform carbon market in a year. The country is the largest exporter of carbon credits. According to a report in The Economic Times, the government is mulling changes in legislation to facilitate a carbon trading scheme. The Economic Times quoted sources as saying that this scheme will subsume all present tradeable certificates. These clean certificates cannot be exported to international carbon markets.

Parliamentary panel suggests changes to Wildlife Protection (Amendment) Bill

The Parliamentary standing committee headed by Congress leader Jairam Ramesh suggested changes to the Wildlife Protection (Amendment) Bill, 2021, to prevent elephant trade. The panel also suggested including non-official members in state/national wildlife boards. Experts previously pointed out that the proposed bill removes the protection given to elephants against being traded commercially. The panel recommended there should be a balance between religious traditions and conservation.

It suggested introducing terms and conditions that would strengthen the protection accorded to seized and surrendered wild animals. The panel suggested at least one-third non-official members from at least three wildlife institutions and the director of the Wildlife Institute of India or his/her nominee should be included on the proposed standing committees of state wildlife boards formed to assess infrastructure projects in and around protected areas.

Air Pollution

Blazing the trail: UP is aiming to reduce PM2.5 level in the air to 45 micrograms per cubic meter in five years | Photo: DNA

UP becomes first to adopt airshed management to cut pollution

Uttar Pradesh became the first Indian state to adopt ‘airshed management’ to reduce pollution with a target of reducing PM2.5 level in the air to 45 micrograms per cubic metre by 2027. UP’s airshed area includes the Indo-Gangetic plain, which gets impacted by stubble burning sites as far as Punjab and Haryana. Under the airshed management approach, sources of pollution within the city (micro airshed) as well as the macro airshed that covers the larger area are addressed.

UP conducted the airshed management workshop recently with the help of the World Bank. The measures will be taken up in coordination with the departments such as rural development, panchayati raj, agriculture, urban development, industrial development, reported TOI.

Delhi braces for dust storms amid heat waves, air quality expected to worsen to ‘very poor’

Delhi is under the grip of a severe heatwave with at least one area touching 46°C. Following the extreme heat, the India Meteorological Department predicted dust storms in the coming week , which is likely to worsen air quality of the city. Noida already touched very poor air quality of 377 on Thursday .

The System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting and Research also predicted air quality to worsen from Monday to Wednesday. Experts said dust becomes a major source of pollution during summer because high temperatures dry up the soil. According to a source apportionment study conducted in 2018 in Delhi, soil, road and construction contributed 25% PM10 and 17% PM2.5, during winter and 42% PM10 and 38% PM2.5 in summers.

Green court orders govt to set standards for indoor air quality

The government should r egulate indoor air quality at public places, India’s green court National Green Tribunal (NGT) said while hearing a petition which contended that indoor air pollution is as serious as outdoor air pollution. A joint committee to be formed by the environment ministry, the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) in coordination with other concerned ministries has been directed to hold its first meeting within one month. The court ordered the joint committee to work out appropriate standards for indoor air quality within three months. Applicants will get the chance to make representations for the standards and protocols.

Renewable Energy

Pumping up: India has a target of producing 5 million tonnes of green hydrogen by 2030 | Photo: BW Businessworld

India sets up first green hydrogen plant in Assam

Government-owned Oil India Limited commissioned India’s first pure green hydrogen plant that can produce 10 kg per day in Jorhat, Assam. The green hydrogen will be generated from a 500 KW solar power plant running a 100 KW Anion Exchange Membrane Electrolyser array, reported web portal Mercom.

The company expects to increase production of green hydrogen from 10 kg per day to 30 kg a day in future. India has a target of producing 5 millions tonnes of green hydrogen by 2030.

Solar imports jumped 210% before BCD kicked in

Solar module imports jumped 210% from 3.13 GW in Q1 2021 to 9.7 GW in Q1 2022 ahead of the imposition of Basic Customs duty on April 1. Mercom reported that developers say it will take time for local manufacturing capacity to ramp up and attain efficiency and quality compared to imported equipment.

Cost of modules from China jumped 40% after the BCD was imposed. Jinks solar was the top supplier during the quarter, while TRINA, LONGI and Canadian solar were other top suppliers, Mercom reported.

Green hydrogen cost drops lower than hydrogen from natural gas for the first time

The record rise in natural gas prices has made green hydrogen cost cheaper than hydrogen produced using natural gas for the first time. Hydrogen experts at BloombergNEF calculated that “one kilogram of grey hydrogen [made with natural gas] currently costs $6.71 in parts of Europe, the Middle East and Africa, compared to $4.84-$6.68 per kilogram for green hydrogen”.

27 states and UTs behind schedule to meet 2022 renewable energy target: Ember

Global think-tank Ember published a study that says four Indian states have already surpassed 2022 renewable energy targets . India planned to touch 125 GW by 2022. The report also said that other 27 states are not even half through their RE targets and require big steps to achieve their target.

According to the Ember report, India has installed 110 GW of renewable energy by March 2022. Rajasthan and Gujarat deployed the highest number of RE power in the past 6 months.

Electric Vehicles

Power play: India's first national battery swapping policy will aim to promote the Battery-as-a-Service (BaaS) industry across India for the faster uptake of EVs | Photo: Livemint

India: NITI Aayog releases draft battery swapping policy to promote BaaS

India’s top planning body released the first draft of the national battery swapping policy on April 22, which will aim to promote the Battery-as-a-Service (BaaS) industry across India for the faster uptake of EVs. The policy will address important regulatory, financial and technical issues surrounding India’s battery swapping ecosystem to “de-risk” it, but it will only support advanced chemistries that are used in batteries that are equivalent to, or are better than, EV batteries currently supported under FAME-II. To ensure operational safety, the manufacturers will be required to equip the units with battery management systems (BMSs) to prevent thermal runaway (catching on fire), as well as internet-of-things (IoT) and remote monitoring and immobilisation features.

Furthermore, the batteries’ life cycle operation will be monitored by the manufacturers through a unique identification number (UIN), and the units will have to comply with the AIS 156 (2020) and AIS 038 Rev 2 (2020) standards. The draft policy will be open to comments and suggestions till June 5, 2022.

Australian scientists to traverse country on Tesla powered by printed solar panels

A team of scientists in Australia will gear up to traverse the nation on a Tesla solely powered by printed solar panels , and the 84-day trip in September 2022 will be used to raise awareness about the possibilities with EVs and about climate change. The solar panels will be printed by a standard commercial printer — one that prints wine labels at the moment — on PET plastic and will only cost about $10/sq. m, but each of the 18 panels will be 18 metres long to soak up as much solar energy as possible. The trip will take the scientists to nearly 70 schools across Australia and they hope that their efforts will make Australians re-think their range anxiety about EVs. The journey may also be similar to a previous long-distance record set for the vehicle, when a Tesla was hypermiled to 1,078km on a single charge in 2017 by the Tesla Owners Club Italia.

India: Tesla to provide $1billion worth of BESS, must not import cars from China

Tesla Power USA announced that it would lease out USD 1 billion worth of battery energy storage systems (BESS) to its Indian customers over the next two to three years, as part of its plan to cater to India’s expanding energy market. The service will enable customers to only pay for OPEX (operational expenses), instead of having to set up and maintain their own battery storage systems under the vastly more expensive CAPEX (capital expenditure) model.

Tesla’s electric cars division, on the other hand, is being discouraged from manufacturing its cars in China and selling them in India by Nitin Gadkari, India’s transport minister, possibly as a step to encourage it to set up shop within India’s borders. Tesla founder Elon Musk has repeatedly pointed out India’s very high import tariffs on vehicles manufactured outside the country, which has been a deterrent for the carmaker to sell its EVs in the country.

Tata Motors discovers record low prices for e-buses under new CESL tender

Tata Motors discovered record low prices for the per kilometre operation of its electric buses — at Rs. 43.49 for 12m buses and Rs. 39.21 for 9m buses — and emerged as the lowest bidder in CESL’s new tender to aggregate demand for the vehicles. Called the Grand Challenge, the Rs. 5,000crore-tender will help deploy 5,450 e-buses across Delhi, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Surat and Kolkata and the buses are assured a service life of at least 12 years. During this period, they are expected to cover 4.71 billion kilometres and prevent 3.31 million tonnes of CO2 from being released into the atmosphere. The tender was developed under the remodelled FAME-II scheme and is also expected to create 25,000 jobs.

Delhi govt to raise taxes on ICE cars to promote EVs, Centre halts e2W launches

The Delhi government is reportedly planning to raise the road taxes on new petrol, diesel and CNG cars registered in the state to make electric cars the more attractive option for new car buyers. The most expensive cars will be targeted first and the new tax structure may come into effect within the next few months. The move is also being seen as a part of the state government’s target to have EVs account for 25% of new vehicle sales by 2024, whereas the share stands at 12.6% at the moment.

Also, the national government issued an order to all electric two-wheeler manufacturers to halt the deliveries of their vehicles until the recent spate of the vehicles catching on fire is investigated. The manufacturers will have to recall their vehicles from any faulty batch, and Okinawa, Ola and Pure EV have already recalled 7,000 units.

Honda to sell 750,000-800,000 EVs in North America by 2030

Leading carmaker Honda Motor Co. announced that it would aim to sell 750,000-800,000 electric vehicles in North America by 2030 , and the vehicles will be developed on its three new platforms that it will work on, along with General Motors (GM). The announcement comes just two weeks after the carmaker pledged to invest nearly $40billion in developing 30 new EV models by the end of the decade , and it is likely to prefer the use of solid-state batteries over conventional lithium-ion units for a greater operational range.

Fossil Fuels

Still keeps growing: Despite all calls to the contrary, China's coal plant fleet has expanded even through the pandemic and continues to add to the global capacity | Photo: The Independent

GEM: Near 1% rise in global coal power capacity as economies recover from COVID-19

A new report by the energy markets tracker GEM (Global Energy Monitor) found that there was a 0.87% increase (18.2GW) in the global coal power capacity last year , evidently because of the economies recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic. Over half of the new capacity came from China, and a total of 176GW of new coal plant capacity was brought under construction in 2021. The report also found that China was the only country that was actively approving new coal plants, while almost all other countries had significantly scaled back their plans for coal power.

Dutch oil and gas firm okayed to drill in North Sea as Germany pulls away from Russian gas

The German government okayed, for the first time, drilling for natural gas in the North Sea (20km north of the Wadden Sea Islands) as it ramps up its pullback from Russian gas supplies. The pullback is the EU’s response to sanctioning Russia for its military offensive against Ukraine and the German government’s decision could unlock around 60 billion cubic metres of the fuel, which would be enough to supply half of The Netherlands’ and Germany’s annual gas consumption. One-Dyas, the firm okayed for the extraction, will commence operations “as soon as possible” in the controversial territory, but the Dutch ministry of economic affairs has indicated that there would not be any significant damage to the region’s ecosystem.

China’s imports of Russian coal grow amidst latter’s tightening international isolation

China is reported to have more than doubled its imports of Russian steel-making coal —from 550,000 tonnes last March to 1.4 million tonnes last month—as the latter supplies heavily discounted quantities of the fuel to its neighbour amidst growing international isolation. China imports coking coal as its domestic coal grades do not carry enough calorific value to be used for steel manufacture, and the country’s vice foreign minister justified the purchase amidst growing calls to further isolate Russia by referring to the “great resilience and internal dynamism of bilateral cooperation” between the two nations. Its own production of thermal coal, too, is on the rise, and its purchase of Russian coking coal is still at prices that are well below what it pays competitors Indonesia and Mongolia.

US: Biden govt to re-open drilling leases on public lands despite campaign promise

The Biden government announced that it would re-open 145,000 acres of public lands to oil and gas drilling , despite the president specifically having campaigned not to do so in February 2020 by saying “And by the way, no more drilling on federal lands, period. Period, period, period” . The leases will be issued in what is a possibly a step for the US to boost its domestic supply of oil and gas as the global prices of the fuels rise amidst the Russian military offensive on Ukraine. However, this time the new leases will increase the royalties payable to the government to 18.75% of the revenues, which is up from the figure of 12.5% that has been frozen in place for a century.

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Hydroelectric power plants in India

October 16, 2021
Posted by: OptimizeIAS Team
Category: DPN Topics

Subject – Geography

Context – Centre asks Kerala to increase generation at hydel stations

India has 197 Hydro Power plants.
The end of the 19th century saw the development of power in India.

Hydro power projects are classified as large and small hydro projects based on their sizes. Different countries have different size criteria to classify small hydro power project capacity ranging from 10MW to 50 MW.
In India, hydro power plants of 25MW or below capacity are classified as small hydro, which have further been classified into micro (100kW or below), mini (101kW-2MW) and small hydro (2-25MW) segments.
Hydro Power was being looked after by Ministry of Power prior to 1989 mainly with the help of State Electricity Boards.
In 1989, plant capacity up to 3MW and below was transferred to the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) and as such 63 MW aggregate installed capacity of 3MW and below hydro projects came within the jurisdiction of MNRE.

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Chapter 9 IED Environment And Sustainable Development

Chapter 1 IED Indian Economy On The Eve Of Independence
Chapter 2 IED Indian Economy 1950-1990
Chapter 3 IED Liberalisation, Privatisation And Globalisation
Chapter 4 IED Poverty
Chapter 5 IED Human Capital Formation In India
Chapter 6 IED Rural Development
Chapter 7 IED Employment: Growth Informalisation Other Issues
Chapter 8 IED Infrastructure
Chapter 10 IED Comparative Development Experiences of India

Strategy 5-Mini Hydel Plants

Last updated at April 16, 2024 by Teachoo

What are Hydroelectric Power Plants?

These are power plants which generate electricity with the help of water

Water is allowed to fall on turbines which move generating electricity

What is Mini Hydel Plants?

These also generate electricity from flow of water on a small scale

These are developed in mountainous areas where there are lot of streams

Energy from streams is used to turn small turbines

These generate small amt of electricity which can be used electricity

Benefits of Mini Hydel Plants

1. They are environment friendly

(They do not burn coal to generate electricity and hence do not cause pollution)

2. No Need for Large Investments

They do not need large transmission towers and cables

Hence, they are budget friendly

3. Less Transmission Loss

Since electricity is to be used locally, there is less transmission loss from transmitting from power stations to homes

Benefits of using it:

1 They are environment friendly

They do not burn coal to generate electricity and hence do not cause pollution

2 No Need for Large Investments

3 Less Transmission Loss

Mini Hydel Plants Meaning These are power plants which generate electricity with the help of water How it Functions Energy from streams is used to turn small turbines These generate small amt of electricity which can be used electricity Where Used In mountainous areas ( where there are lot of streams) Benefits Environment Friendly (No Pollution) No Need for Large Investments Less Transmission Loss

Maninder Singh

CA Maninder Singh is a Chartered Accountant for the past 14 years and a teacher from the past 18 years. He teaches Science, Economics, Accounting and English at Teachoo

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In India’s Three-Way Energy Storage Race, Hydel’s Viability Is in Question

The Bhagirathi river flows past the Tehri dam. Photo: sharadaprasad/Flickr, CC BY 2.0

India’s BJP government wants to hike India’s installed hydel capacity to 70,000 MW by 2030 – a 50% jump from the current 45,700 MW – and is also readying pumped storage.
The catch: this push coincindes with a time when batteries and electrolysers are evolving rapidly, and when the cost of green hydrogen is expected to plummet as well.
New hydel projects are expected to go live by 2030, but their viability hinges on an external variable: the price of battery and electrolyser storage by then.

This is the second part of a three-part series on hydroelectric power in India’s future.

The first instalment of this series ended with a question. By 2030, India wants to get 500 GW of energy from wind and solar. At that point, India will need as much as 85 GW of storage to balance the grid. Accordingly, the BJP-headed NDA government is making a huge push on not just batteries and green hydrogen, but also hydel.

It wants to hike India’s installed hydel capacity to 70,000 MW by 2030 – a 50% jump from the current 45,700 MW. It’s also readying a large push on pumped storage. As energy minister R.K. Singh told Economic Times , the NDA has identified 63 projects adding up to a generating capacity of 96,000 MW.

The catch: India is pushing hydel storage at a time when rival storage technologies like batteries and electrolysers are evolving rapidly. Not only are battery prices falling steeply across the world , the cost of green hydrogen is expected to plummet as well.

This raises the obvious question. These hydel projects are expected to go live by 2030. Their viability, however, hinges on an external variable – the price of battery and electrolyser storage by 2030.

Essentially, how big a role will hydel play in decarbonising India?

How the prices compare

Early in 2020, the Solar Energy Corporation of India floated an interesting tender . It wanted 1,200 MW of renewable power (solar or wind) with storage for six hours. Hyderabad-based Greenko won 900 MW with a peak power tariff rate of Rs 6.12/kWh, and the rest went to Renew Power, which bid Rs 6.85/kWh. Interestingly, while Renew used lithium-ion batteries for storage, Greenko bet on pumped storage. Can pumped storage retain this price advantage?

Hydel is a mature technology with little scope for dramatic cost-reduction. If anything, cement is getting costlier. So is resettlement. With banks, given the energy transition, wary of financing projects that will take 10 years to come up, financing costs will be high as well.

In contrast, prices of batteries and electrolysers are expected to fall. “As manufacturing scale builds up, the density of these technologies improves, and new methods to reduce rare earth dependence come up, prices will fall,” said Rahul Walawalkar, the president of India Energy Storage Alliance.

Take lithium-ion batteries, which account for 90% of the global grid battery storage market today. In April 2020, four energy researchers – from Prayas Energy Group, Maharashtra Electricity Regulatory Authority and the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory – published a report entitled ‘Estimating the Cost of Grid-Scale Lithium-Ion Battery Storage in India’. Studying American battery storage projects to gauge how prices are moving, they pegged the cost of a Battery Energy Storage (BESS) at Rs 1.44/kWh in 2020, Rs 1.0/kWh in 2025, and Rs 0.83/kWh in 2030.

What about electrolysers? Reliance, as we know, has promised to produce green hydrogen at the cost of $1/kilo. With one kilo of hydrogen – which accounts for 80% of the cost of power generation – producing 33.6 units of electricity, that works out to, at the current exchange rate, a little below Rs 3 a unit. More conservative estimates peg the price of green hydrogen at $2 by 2030. Which works out to about Rs 5.50/unit.

And then, there is pumped storage. A feasibility report for the 1,200 MW Kurukutti Pumped Storage Project in Andhra Pradesh, which is coming up in Andhra’s Vizianagaram district, seeks to meet the peaking demand for the south grid in general and Andhra Pradesh in particular. Its levelised tariff – tariff averaged over the life of the project – has “been found to be Rs 7.85/kWh considering cost of pumping @ Rs 3.00/kWh,” says the report, prepared by Tata Consulting Engineers in August 2021.

There is no reason why that tariff should not be the industry norm. At 1,200 MW, Kurukutti’s capital costs stand at Rs 4,766 crore. The 1,200 MW pumped storage component of Greenko’s Pinnavaram project costs a similar Rs 5,468 crore . Or take Greenko’s 2,520 MW Shahpur Pumped Storage project, which costs Rs11,579 crore.

Taken together, they suggest a range of Rs 3.9-4.59 crore per MW.

The cost of a run of the river (RoR) – or a multipurpose – project can be even higher, said Jayant Kawale, the former head of Jindal Steel and Power’s hydel business. “The cost of power from these projects might be as high as Rs 12/13. Even the best of projects will not be less than eight rupees a unit.”

This, however, doesn’t mean there is no room for hydel.

Looking beyond price

Mention low solar tariffs to hydel executives and they bristle. Part of the reason solar is cheaper than hydel is the subsidies it enjoys. “Too many ancillary costs of solar are not being factored in – like the O&M [Operation and Maintenance] costs of power plants kept idling that DISCOMs have to pay,” said Probodh Mallick, a senior executive at Marubeni.

According to them, the overweening focus on low tariffs is narrow-minded and hurts India. In the past, for instance, the focus on tariffs has resulted in India spurning offers by Kazakhstan, China and Russia to set up large solar plants through the MoU route. “Why is everything being decided only through competitive bidding? Why not through the MoU route?” a former bureaucrat at Solar Energy Corporation of India had told CarbonCopy last year. “What is happening as a result is that we are ending up with low quality infrastructure.”

A similar critique applies to storage as well. Price cannot be its sole yardstick. We need other parameters as well.

At this time, amongst all these technologies, hydel can best mirror fluctuations in national power demand. We saw this in April 2020 when India switched off its lights at 9 pm (for 9 minutes) after Modi said this would show solidarity against COVID. That night, power demand dropped by as much as 32 GW in a few minutes before amping up again.

It was an unprecedented drop. Even smaller mismatches between power supply and demand can result in power frequency spiking or dropping, putting users’ (and the country’s) electrical infrastructure at risk. India rode that evening out by damping thermal power production while increasing the share of hydel power by 8:30 PM, using it to mirror power demand over the next hour, and then ramping thermal back up again.

In contrast, grid-level battery storage, globally and in India , works at smaller scales today.

Can that change by 2030?

The rise of dispersed storage

In energy circles, opinion is split on that question. One school of thought says BESS and its ilk can take care of relatively smaller loads – but that heavier balancing will need to be done by hydel.

“Nowhere in the world do we have battery installations at a grid-level,” said R. Srikanth, the dean of the school of natural sciences and engineering at the Bangalore-based National Institute of Advanced Studies. Referring to the Central Electricity Authority’s projection that BESS storage in India will rise to 27 GW by 2030 , he said its projections hinge on the assumption that battery prices will fall by two-thirds by 2030.

Others disagree. According to Walawalkar, storage will evolve granularly. “About 30-40% of India’s power demand is commercial load,” he said. “This segment of the market keeps backups. Even today, RE and storage is cheaper than diesel generators. The latter costs around Rs 10-12 per unit.”

He cited mobile phone towers. Reliance, he said, chose lithium-ion batteries over diesel gensets. Data centres are doing the same. “It is a trap to think the market will take off at $50 – not at $100,” he told CarbonCopy . “Instead, we should see this as a question of the customer segments that can switch at the higher price – and keep driving price down through the scale they generate,” he said. “At each $5 gap, there is a 10x market available. At every 10x rise in scale, there will be a 10-15% cost reduction as well.”

What facilitates such reduction, he said, is the sector’s level of technological maturity. “Unlike solar, which rode on large government tenders, storage has reached a technological point where it will move anyway,” he said.

Walawalkar also alluded to thermal power plants. “Instead of building for peak demand and subsequently running them at lower plant load factors, generators could set up smaller capacities with storage, and use that to smooth out their production variations.”

Listening to him, it seems that India might see the rise of more dispersed storage solutions. This mirrors trends in generation.

This raises a new question. If BESS/electrolysers evolve into grid-level storage – or if the market finds dispersed solutions for grid stabilisation viable – what does the future hold for hydel?

The answer depends on the size of their reservoir.

Looking at scale

Most storage technologies discharge their stored energy quickly. A battery with 1 MW capacity and 4 MWH of usable energy will have a storage duration of four hours. RoR projects too come with small reservoirs. So do pumped storage projects. Built with two reservoirs, these generate power by letting water flow to the lower one – and then use cheap off-peak power to pump water up to the higher one.

All of these are better at tackling short-lived variations. The only long-duration storage solution we have is multi-purpose hydel projects. Given their large reservoirs, they can respond to seasonal variations in power supply and demand mismatches – apart from serving other ends like irrigation. The rest will have to compete.

What will such competition look like? One part of the answer again comes back to price. RoR projects come with high initial costs, but almost nothing thereafter. Pumped storage projects, given their need to push water back into the upper reservoir, come with higher operating costs. The batteries comprising BESS will need to be periodically replaced. “Will battery storage of a very large capacity have similar life and running costs as a large pumped hydro?” asked Santosh Khatelsal, the founder of Bangalore-based Enerparc Energy.

“Perhaps not. There will be a size/capacity till which this may be true but not above this size.”

At the same time, as Walawalkar said, India is moving towards a future where both generation and storage will see decentralisation. In generation, rooftop solar was a step in that direction. Micro-grids, of the kind Reliance is said to be planning, are another.

In storage, too, as generators and users create their private arrangements, the nature of supply-demand mismatches will change.

There will still be room for large, centralised generation and storage. If there is a sudden surge of demand in a grid, said Khatelsal, batteries cannot amp up their output. India will need stand-by generation as well. Needing to ramp up quickly, this might take the form of hydel or gas.

And yet, all hydel projects don’t have the same capacity to step up when needed. Just as solar’s output drops during the monsoon, hydel has its ebbs as well. “You will not get your full storage of 10-15 hours all days in a year,” said Walawalkar. “Maybe you will get 10 hours worth of storage for 100 days, 6 hours’ worth of storage for 200 days, and 2 hours worth of storage for 300 days or maybe even the full 365 days,” he added to illustrate the problem.

And so, the question is about the frequency of use. Will hydel be more competitive than BESS et al for meeting smaller variations in demand? If not, how frequently will it be called into service?

NHPC, Neepco and Greenko did not respond to questions sent by CarbonCopy asking for their perspective on this matter.

The end game

A clutch of factors complicate this picture further. At a time when India’s new energy architecture is taking shape, long-term lending can be riskier than usual. “With solar and storage, I will get delivery after two years,” said Kawale. “The value of this predictability is very high.” Hydel, on the other hand, will struggle to raise funds.

To make matters worse, the Indian government has rosy projections for renewable energy expansion. India’s energy targets are increasingly top-down, not bottom-up. The country will need 80 GW of storage and grid stabilisation if it adds 343 GW of renewable capacity between now and 2030. This may not happen. Not only has the country missed previous targets – shortly after coming to power, the current administration said India will get 175 GW from renewables (excluding large hydro) by 2022 target; what it managed was 100 GW .

“This is not just bad planning,” said a former energy researcher at Delhi’s Centre for Policy Research. “Most of the current crop of bureaucrats cut their teeth during the nineties and 2000s when high growth rates could be taken for granted. And so, there is a certain techno-optimism that these projections will take care of themselves.” This is what happens, he said, when the state works in mission mode.

Put it all together and a hazy picture emerges. On one hand, unlike hydel, batteries and electrolysers are yet unproven technologies at the level of a grid. Despite being more expensive, hydel comes with fewer import dependencies too.

At the same time, there is a danger that the current state of affairs, where low solar tariffs have elbowed out hydel power, might repeat itself in storage.

And so, the government has created hydel purchase obligations. DISCOMs will have to buy power produced by all the dams commissioned after March 8, 2019 , even if it is costlier. But DISCOMs are cash-strapped. Compelled to buy costly power, they will delay payments; or their economics will weaken further; or, the volume of electricity they buy will fall.

They will also pass these costs onto their customers, which might create a situation similar to that of rooftop solar. “These price distortions are borne mostly by the industrial users,” said Srikanth, the professor at Bangalore-based National Institute of Advanced Studies. “And so, whenever they get a chance, they desert DISCOMs.”

If hydel pushes up the price of power from DISCOMs, will users opt for more decentralised solutions? In that case, given the caveats about the government’s targets, how big a market will RoR and pumped storage projects be left with?

Given these risks, the private sector is not stepping into hydel. The sector is back with the public sector. On their shoulders lies the gamble.

This article was first published by CarbonCopy and was republished here with permission. M. Rajshekhar is an independent reporter studying corruption, oligarchy and the political economy of India’s environment.

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Environment

Hydel Power- The MOST Contentious of all Renewable Energy Sources

September 14, 2022

Manoj Misra

As kids we slept each night to the soothing gurgle of a gul that flowed within the campus of our dwelling and right next to our room. It was one of the several distributaries of a canal extracted from our town’s water life-line namely the river Kho. We took it for granted but were in full realization that our fields were irrigated with its waters. The canal that flowed through the heart of the town was our bal-sakha (childhood friend) for it never failed to excite our imagination nor minded our little pranks.

Guls and Kuls in the hills of western Himalaya are a traditional system of harvesting surface flowing water for making it perform useful works like irrigating fields, conveying fresh water to homes and running water mills (gharat) where hydropower turned millstone to grind grains.

Humans learnt pretty early that water flowing down a gradient carried energy utilizable to perform useful tasks. Most ancient civilizations, specifically Greeks and Egyptians report utilizing hydro-power to perform useful tasks. In China during the Han dynasty (202 BC – 9 AD) hydropower milled grains, broke ores and was used in paper making. Our sages too sang of its power in olden times.

Oldest deity of the Vedas is Varuna. God of all things water, it lords over, rivers and oceans and all the living beings in them. While Indra brings rain, it is Varuna that has vested power, physical, spiritual and moral onto waters.

Water Turbines

In modern times energy associated with running waters has been harnessed to turn turbines and produce electricity. Architecture Hydraulique, authored in the mid 1700s by Bernard Forest de Bélidor, a French engineer, is credited to have laid the foundation of modern hydroelectric turbines.

Another French engineer Benoit Fourneyron developed in 1827 a hydro turbine capable of producing 6 HP electric power. In 1849, James Francis, a British-American engineer developed the Francis turbine which remains in common use even today, despite later development in 1880 of the Pelton wheel by Lester Allan Pelton, an American and Kaplan turbine in 1913 by Viktor Kaplan, an Austrian professor. In 1905, a hydroelectric station was built on the Xindian creek near Taipei, in China with an installed capacity of 500 KW.

But it was during the 20th century specially post the New Deal policies from the 1930s of President Franklin D. Roosevelt that hydropower projects took off in a major way all across the USA with the Hoover and Grand Coulee dams being its crowning glories.

For example the Hoover dam raised over river Colorado is a 221 m high concrete structure which is designed to produce 2080 MW of electric power amongst other benefits. A global surge for economic reconstruction following the Second World War led to the construction of hydropower dams all over the globe. In the 21st century China has led the world in construction of mega dams with its iconic 22,500 MW Three Gorges dam being the most famous.

In India Pandit Jawahar Lal Nehru, the first Prime Minister called them the “temples of modern India” while initiating in 1955 the construction of the Bhakra Nangal Dam over river Sutlej in the then state of Punjab.

Although soon enough Nehru was to chide the engineers on their obsession with “gigantism” but his first glorification of dams has remained stuck in public memory and comes handy to dam pushers. Today India at 5334 large dams has the distinction of being the third largest dam builder in the world. There is hardly any undammed river left in the country.

Globally hydropower contributes some 17 percent of electricity generation. In India it is around 13 percent. But it has not taken long for well meaning and knowledgeable people to find serious ill effects of these dams over rivers. By its very nature a dam on a river by obstructing and altering its natural flow pattern dramatically transforms a dynamic system into a static one.

It has had serious adverse social, economic and environmental implications both upstream and downstream of the rivers, being one of the most critical natural ecosystems on earth.

It is now common knowledge that human interference with natural systems on earth has brought life on earth including humans onto a precipice. It is little wonder that now there is a global movement to bring down existing dams both in the USA and Europe where at the last count some 2000 dams had already been removed.

But is all hydro-power disastrous?

Not really. Any hydro power that is micro scale and respects a river as an ecosystem should be OK. It is now a technologist’s challenge to devise ways and means that meet the before mentioned expectations vis a vis rivers. Also not all hydropower is riverine. The marine environment with energy carried by ocean currents in tides and waves is now being increasingly harnessed to produce electricity.

Tidal turbines are under development to produce electricity with huge potential although till 2016 global marine energy generation capacity was only 500 MW. But this was also because global dependence on fossil fuels for energy production had ensured little exploratory efforts for non fossil fuel sources.

Hopefully a concerted effort on adoption of renewable sources of energy necessitated by manmade climate change shall give a fillip to technologies like marine turbines, which might come as a boon to coastal nations and regions.

Caveat

It is important that a search for viable and environment and biodiversity friendly renewable sources of energy is scale sensitive and avoids need for energy transfer over long distances for the ill effects of huge transmission lines today spreading their tentacles all over national landscapes with significant social, economic and ecological (including biological) adverse impacts.

These are largely poorly understood, appreciated and underplayed even by researchers and activists for all their attention is claimed by sites and technologies that actually produce the energy than how it is transmitted or consumed. This must change.

The article was published in The Dialogue as Hydro Power – Most Controversial Of All RE Sources on September 7, 2022.

Read another piece by Manoj Misra- Clean & Sustainable Energy: The Next Generation Source of Energy in IMPRI insights

Read another by Manoj Misra – Worlds Oldest And Still Functioning Dam: The Story of Raja Bhoj and its Mandideep ‘Island ‘ in IMPRI insights

Read another piece by Manoj Misra- Reducing Water Footprint in Electricity Production in IMPRI insights

Read another piece by Manoj Misra- Deserts and Ravines are not Wastelands in IMPRI insights

YouTube: Watch Manoj Mishra at IMPRI #PlanetTalks on Interlinking of Rivers (ILR) – A Flawed and Avoidable Concept

About the Author

Manoj Misra , former member of the Indian Forest Service (IFS), and Convener of Yamuna Jiye Abhiyaan (Living Yamuna Campaign) a civil society consortium and also a member of Water Conflicts Forum and the India Rivers Forum, Organising Committee

IMPRI, a startup research think tank, is a platform for pro-active, independent, non-partisan and policy-based research. It contributes to debates and deliberations for action-based solutions to a host of strategic issues. IMPRI is committed to democracy, mobilization and community building.

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An India Specific Study of Global Hydel Power Scenario

International Journal of Computational Intelligence & IoT, Vol. 2, No. 1, 2019

5 Pages Posted: 20 Mar 2019

Bappaditya Shome

Siliguri Institute of Technology

Suman Dutta

Surojit chanda, subhojit dawn.

Velagapudi Ramakrishna Siddhartha Engineering College

Date Written: March 19, 2019

Now a day, electricity has become an integral part of the most basic ingredients required for the survival of mankind, besides food, shelter, and clothing. Unarguably, the demand for such an important asset has always been on an exponential rise. As a consequence, to meet this demand, moving from conventional to non-conventional sources for generation of electricity has become an obligation. This paper is prepared with the motive to present the energy gap in recent world with special importance given to Indian subcontinent and how hydropower can prove to be a goldmine in this field. A brief study in the world scenario of hydropower with their advantages, future policy and potential are also presented in this paper.

Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation

Bappaditya Shome (Contact Author)

Siliguri institute of technology ( email ).

West Bengal, 734009 India

Velagapudi Ramakrishna Siddhartha Engineering College ( email )

Vijayawada, 520007 India

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Essay on the Hydro-Electricity or Hydel Power in India (1504 Words)

Hydro electric power plays a major role in the field of power development in the country. Its present contribution to the total electricity generation is about 25 per cent. Hydro electricity power is a renewable natural resource.

Image Source: energy-alaska.wdfiles.com

How it Works :

1. The generation of electricity by using the force of falling water is called hydro-electricity.

2. Water is a renewable resource and can be used year after year. Thus, making hydel power cheaper to produce than thermal or nuclear power.

3. Water from storage reservoirs is sent through pipes along a steep gradient to rotate the turbines, which convert this energy into electricity. This process is very clean and does not cause pollution of any kind.

4. The water used for generating hydro-electricity is not consumed or contaminated in any way and is still available and suitable for use. It may be used for irrigation, industries or domestic purposes.

5. After the initial cost of constructing dams, power stations and transmission lines, the production of hydro-electricity is inexpensive since there is no consumption of fuel as in thermal power stations.

6. In most cases in India, the production of hydro-electricity is linked with irrigation, flood control, navigation and therefore the cost of hydel power production is lower.

Development of Hydro-Electricity in India:

Our country is endowed with enormous economically exploitable and viable hydro potential assessed to be about 84000 MW-at 60% load factor (148701 MW installed capacity.

The first hydro generating unit in India was commissioned in Darjeeling (W.Bengal) in 1897. Many projects were taken up for execution after independence and at one time (1962-63), the capacity contribution from hydro schemes was equal to thermal schemes.

However, with the rapid increase in demand for power, higher priority was given to the pithead super thermal power stations as their gestation period was smaller than of the hydel schemes. About 30 new hydro projects are now under execution with an installed capacity of 5,600 mw. The more important among these are the Nathpa Jhakri Project, Sardar Sarovar Project, and Sri Sailam Project.

Although hydro electricity accounts for less than 1/4th of the total installed capacity of electricity in India, it is the single largest source of energy for some states, e.g. Kerala’s cent per cent dependence is on hydro-electricity.

The other states being Himachal Pradesh (99.3%), Meghalaya (96.4%) and Sikkim (90%). Hydroelectricity accounts for over 2/3rds of the total installed capacity in Karnataka (79%), Odisha (72.2%), Jammu and Kashmir (68.8%) and Arunachal Pradesh (67.8%) while some other areas like Andhra Pradesh, Punjab, Rajasthan etc. depend upon this source for more than half of their installed capacity of hydro electricity is concerned. Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Maharashtra, Odisha, Punjab, Tamil Nadu and Uttar Pradesh are the outstanding states.

Hydro-Electric Power (HEP) generated from water is the cheapest amongst all the sources. Following are favourable conditions for the development of HEP in India.

(i) There should be perennial flow of large volume of water.

(ii)The water should fall from a sufficient height. This height may be in the form of a natural waterfall or obtained by constructing a dam across the river.

(iii) There should be no silting of water to save machinery.

(iv) A readily available market is an essential requirement for generating HEP as electricity cannot be stored.

(v) The generation of HEP requires huge capital investment as it is capital- intensive.

Thus heavy rainfall, rough topography to cause water to fall and a regular and continuous flow of water are the three important geographical requirements for developing hydro- electricity. Waterfalls exist mainly in the Cardamom hills, the Shillong plateau and the sea facing margins of the Western and Eastern Ghats.

Hydro- electricity is developed mainly in the Western Ghat, Kerala, Western UP, Himachal Pradesh and the Punjab because these areas are located far away from the coal mines and have sufficient water.

Due to heavy rainfall, deep and narrow river valleys and waterfalls, Western Ghats, the Nilgiri hills and the Cardamom hills have substantial share in the installed hydro-electricity capacity. The narrowness of river valleys reduce the cost of construction. India’s natural waterways are more or less evenly distributed over the entire country.

About 20 per cent of this capacity has been harnessed and 80 per cent still remains unharnessed. But there are some topographic limitations, as the regions possessing large hydro-power resources do not have enough demand for power to warrant development of the hydro power resources on a large scale.

Further the storage hydro power stations with large capacities have high initial capital requirements. Lastly, the performance of the hydro power stations has been seasonally variable. However, notwithstanding these limitations the country has a sizable quantum of untapped hydro resources.

Hydro-electricity Dominated Region:

It extends over Karnataka Kerala, Himachal, Jammu and Kashmir, Western Ghats, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Tripura and Sikkim. These are far away from coal fields but have optimum condition for the development of Hydro-electricity.

Potential and Developed Water Power :

Potential water power refers to the power that could be generated if all the water resources are harnessed. India is blessed with vast resources of water power. In potential water power, India comes after Republic of Zaire, Russia, Canada and the United States of America. India’s water power potential is estimated to be over 40 million kilowatts.

Nearly 60% of the potential water power resources lie in the Himalayas, while the remaining lie in Peninsular India. So far the areas richer in potential hydel power have practically not been developed.

The Himalayan region in Assam, Bihar and Uttar Pradesh has not been fully exploited. At present about 66% of the developed water power resources lies in the Western Ghats.

Factors Affecting H.E.P. Development:

The following are the factors which influence H E P. development.

(i) A Head of Water:

The hydro-turbines are driven by the force of the water against their blades. In natural streams and rivers, the force of the water is greatest where it flows most swiftly or where it falls rapidly as in the case of a waterfall or rapids. Even a smaH stream, when dropping from a great height has tremendous power and can be used to generate electricity.

Thus, many H.E.P. generating plants are located in mountainous districts where the rivers and streams have a steep gradient and waterfalls are common, e.g. the Swiss Alps, Scandinavia, the Rocky Mountains, Appalachians and the Japanese Alps. Rivers with a low gradient but a large volume of water can also be utilized, e.g. the River Shannon in Ireland or the Volta River in Ghana.

(ii) Large Volume of Water:

Generally speaking, although almost any river could be used to generate H.E.P., in practice, it is much more economic to harness large rivers such as the Indus, Nile or Zaire, than to use smaller rivers and streams.

(iii) Regular and Reliable Water supply:

It is important that rivers to be harnessed for power generation should not be subjected to great fluctuations in the volume of water, since this would make it difficult for plants to operate at a constant level of power production.

(iv) Presence of Lakes:

The presence of natural lakes along the course of a river is often a great advantage in H.E.P. development. There are many examples of this in Switzerland and Britain. In most cases, however, there are few natural lakes in suitable locations and dams are built to create large artificial lakes.

(v) Space for a Reservoir:

Another aspect of planning the construction of a dam for H.E.P. generation is that there must be a suitable location for creating a lake if this is necessary.

(vi) Large Market:

As electricity cannot be stored for long on a large scale, the demand for the power generated, by both domestic and industrial consumers, must be large and constant to warrant the initiation of H.E.P. stations.

(vii) Heavy Capital Outlay:

Modern large-scale H.E.P. projects are expensive undertakings. It is a common misconception, because H.E.P. is derived from water which is free, that it is always cheap. Once initial costs have been recouped, it may indeed be relatively cheap but this will necessarily take some time.

Because initial costs are so high H.E.P. undertakings are usually financed and operated by governments, which are concerned more with providing services than with profits. This is particularly true of multi-purpose projects.

Integrated Power Grid :

The production of electricity from hydel power stations in India varies from year to year depending on the variation of the monsoon rainfall. (In other parts of the world with cold winters, the freezing of lakes and rivers hinders power production).

This drawback of hydel power production can be overcome by the development of an integrated power grid. An integrated power grid is bringing into a common network power stations fed on different sources of power.

In this way thermal power stations can supplement hydel power during periods of low water supply or a breakdown on any kind. This helps to maintain a power supply on a regular basis free from marked fluctuations.

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Essay on Electricity , Essay on Electricity in India , Essay on Hydroelectricity

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Mineral and Energy Resources — II

Class 10 - veena bhargava geography solutions, multiple choice questions.

Conventional energy resources consist of

tidal energy
wind energy

This is the best quality of coal with 80% carbon

Petroleum is

non-inflammable liquid

natural fossil fuel

renewable form of energy resource
none of the above

Hydel power is a

renewable resource

non-renewable resource
exhaustible resource
very expensive

Multipurpose projects were installed by Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru to

supply water to cities and for power generation

for navigation
for economic development
to avoid silting in the river

Hirakud dam was constructed mainly

for irrigation

to control floods

to supply water for domestic use
to store water

The main raw materials for generation of atomic energy

uranium and plutonium

coal and non-ore
manganese and copper
copper and bauxite

Solar energy is

in-exhaustible

non-renewable
non affordable
more useful in temperate zone

Identify the type of energy used in the given picture

solar energy
biomass energy
tidal power

Solar energy

Question 10

Largest coal field in India

Bombay High

Answer the following

How is energy obtained?

Energy is obtained from conventional sources like Coal, Petroleum, Natural gas, Hydel power, Thermal power, Nuclear power; and non-conventional energy sources like solar, wind, biogas, tidal, geothermal etc.

How do we classify energy?

The energy can be classified (on the basis of source) as follows:

Natural Gas
Hydel power
Thermal power
Nuclear power

Where is coal got from?

Coal is a fossil fuel that is extracted from the ground using mining techniques. The common methods of coal extraction are surface mining and underground mining. Surface mining is used to obtain coal from deposits closer to the earth's surface. Underground mining is used to extract coal that is deep beneath the earth's surface.

Why is coal often referred to as 'black gold'?

Coal is a valuable and abundant natural resource that has played an important role in the economic development of many countries. It has been used to power everything from steam engines to electricity-generating power plants to iron and steel manufacturing plants. To highlight the valuable nature of coal and its impact on society and industry, it is referred to as 'black gold'.

Write in brief about the origin of coal.

Coal is formed from the remains of ancient plants and animals that died millions of years ago and were buried under layers of sediment. Over time, the heat and pressure from the sediment caused the remains to change into different types of coal, such as Anthracite, Bituminous, Lignite and Peat.

Give the different varieties of coal. Which do you think is the best variety? Why?

The different varieties of coal are:

The best variety of coal is Anthracite because it contains 80% carbon and thus provide more energy on burning.

Name the main coal-bearing areas of India.

The main coal-bearing areas of India are Jharkhand, Odisha, West Bengal and Madhya Pradesh.

List the state-wise distribution of coal.

The state-wise distribution of coal is listed below:

Jharkhand — Jharkhand has the largest reserves of coal (33.53%) in India. The main coal fields are Jharia, Bokaro, Giridih, Hazaribagh and Karanpura.
Chattisgarh — The main coal field is Korba.
Odisha — The main coal fields are Talcher and Sambalpur.
Madhya Pradesh — Singrauli and Sholapur are the main coal fields. Others are Pench valley and Shahdol.
West Bengal — has about 18% of India's coal reserves. Ranigunj is the main coal field.
Maharashtra — Wardha valley, Mahapari, Kamptee Unrer and Chandrapur.
Telangana — Singreni
Tamil Nadu — Neyveli

Which state ranks first in the Gondwana coal?

Jharkhand ranks first in the Gondwana coal. It has 33.53% of total coal in India.

Name three important states which form the tertiary coal distribution.

Three important states which form the tertiary coal distribution are Kashmir, Assam and Arunachal Pradesh.

Question 11

Name any three major problems of coal mining industry.

Three major problems of coal mining industry are:

Destruction of Forest — Digging of Coal may destroy forest areas that serve as wildlife habitat. It affects the ecosystem and biodiversity.
Need of extensive transportation — Transportation requires huge infrastructure. Building transportation facilities destroys the landscape and increase pollution due to emissions of various vehicles.
Impact on miners' health — Underground mining is prone to cave-ins and explosions. The health of the people living close to the mines is at risk. Constant exposure to harmful gases can lead to respiratory diseases, lung cancer, black lung due to coal dust and congestive heart failure.

Question 12

List any two ways by which one can conserve coal.

Two ways by which one can conserve coal are:

We should find alternative and renewable source to coal.
Saving energy by turning off appliances when not in use.

Question 13

Where is petroleum obtained from?

Petroleum is obtained from sedimentary rocks of the earth. Petroleum is taken out from On-shore oil-fields and Off-shore oil-fields.

Question 14

Name the two most important areas of petroleum oil.

The two most important areas of petroleum are:

Offshore sea at Mumbai High, Bassein and Aliabet.
Digboi, Naharkatiya, Rudra Sagar and Nunmati in Assam.

Question 15

Name a few important oil fields of North East India.

A few important oil fields of North East India are Digboi, Moran, Rudrasagar, etc.

Question 16

Name a few important oil fields of West India.

A few important oil fields of West India are Ankleshwar, Kalol, Mehsana, Dholaka, etc.

Question 17

Why is Mumbai High considered to be major oil bearing site in India?

Mumbai High is considered to be major oil bearing site in India because it produces more than one-third crude oil output of India.

Question 18

How many oil refineries do we have in India?

There are 23 operational oil refineries in India.

Question 19

Name a few problems of natural gas.

A few problems of natural gas are:

It creates green house emission like other fossil fuels.
It cannot be used at large scale.
It is highly volatile and can be dangerous if handled or transported carelessly.
It is colorless, odorless and tasteless which makes its leak detection difficult.
Lack of required compression and transport facilities leads to flaring of gas. It may occur due to lack of technical help for operational safety.

Question 20

Name the different types of electricity.

The different type of electricity depending upon the raw material used for production are:

Hydroelectricity
Thermal Electricity
Nuclear Electricity

Question 21

What are the main causes for the low production of hydel powers?

The main causes for the low production of hydel powers are:

Most of the river regimes in India are extremely erratic and highly seasonal (especially in south). Hence, these rivers cannot provide Hydel Power generation consistently.
Many rivers do not have natural waterfalls and huge capital has to be invested for constructing dams.
The sites suitable for generating hydroelectricity are located away from the consuming centres. As a result a lot of energy is wasted in transmission.

Question 22

Enumerate the factors needed for installing a hydroelectric project.

The factors needed for installing a hydroelectric project are:

Mountainous area where water falls from a height — the potential energy of falling water helps the turbine to move.
Permanent supply of water can be ensured by perennial rivers. Hence, snow-fed rivers of the Himalayas are of great use for the generation of hydropower.
Climate should be suitable i.e. the rivers should not freeze during winter.
Water of the river should be silt free or water should be stored in artificial reservoirs before releasing in hydel channel.
A gorge between the two hills is the most suitable site for building dams.
Flow of water should be uniform in the river. Any fluctuation would affect the generation of electricity.
There should be enough scope for electricity supply i.e. an industrial zone so that the loss of electricity is minimum in transmission.

Question 23

How important is the hydel power projects for India?

The hydel power projects are important for India because:

Energy demand of India is huge and developing country like India need to promote clean, renewable energy source like Hydel power.
India has many rivers and geographical features that support the development of Hydel power.
Western Ghats receive heavy rainfall and has steep waterfalls which can be developed to produce hydroelectricity.

Question 24

How do hydel power projects score over thermal projects?

Hydel power projects score over thermal projects in following ways:

Hydel Power is inexhaustible and renewable source of power whereas coal — the major factor in thermal power — is exhaustible and non renewable.
It is cheaper to build the dams than building thermal power station.
Hydel power projects do not cause any pollution whereas thermal power plants find it difficult to get rid of wastage.
It is easy to transport it for long distances while thermal power projects are restricted to areas of coal production.

Question 25

What are the main disadvantages of H.E.P?

The main disadvantages of H.E.P are:

The location is very important for the construction of hydel power projects. Regions must be mountainous or hilly so that water falls from a height.
The supply of water may fluctuate thus affecting the generation of electricity.
Almost all the power projects face the problem of silting.

Question 26

Which was the first state to set up H.E.P project?

West Bengal was the first state to set up H.E.P project.

Question 27

What are the disadvantages of thermal electricity?

The disadvantages of thermal electricity are:

The thermal power is exhaustible and non-renewable.
Building thermal power station is expensive.
Thermal electricity production cause pollution.
Thermal power stations are restricted to areas of coal production

Question 28

Name three coal-based projects.

Three coal-based projects are:

Rihand in Uttar Pradesh
Vindhyachal in Madhya Pradesh
Talcher Kaniha in Odisha

Question 29

What are the raw materials required for nuclear energy?

The raw materials required for nuclear energy are Uranium, Plutonium, Beryllium and Thorium.

Question 30

Where is uranium found in India?

Uranium is available in the copper belt of Bihar and the rocks of the Aravali range in Rajasthan.

Question 31

Name the nuclear power stations of India.

The nuclear power stations of India are:

Tarapur in Maharashtra
Narora in Uttar Pradesh
Kakrapara in Gujarat
Rana Pratap Sagar in Rajasthan

Question 32

Name a few non-conventional sources of energy.

A few non-conventional sources of energy are Sun, Wind, Biogas, Tides, Geothermal energy.

Question 33

How do the non-conventional sources of energy score over the conventional sources of energy?

The non-conventional sources of energy score over the conventional sources of energy in following ways:

These sources of energy are available freely and in abundance. In fact they are 'renewable' so there is no fear of them getting exhausted or depleted.
They are environment friendly and do not produce any waste or cause pollution.
They can be tapped at large scale at one place or in small amount at number of places at the same time, including remote and inaccessible areas like hilly terrains, deep forests or deserts.
When situated close to load centres, they can result in reduction of overall cost of electricity generation, making it cost effective.

Question 34

Explain the need to develop the alternative sources of energy.

The conventional energy sources are limited in nature and will exhaust completely if we continue to use them. These sources of energy also cause pollution and global warming. Therefore, we need to develop the alternative sources of energy which must be clean to use and renewable. These alternative sources should be environment friendly.

Question 35

State two advantages that biogas has over the solar energy.

Two advantages that biogas has over the solar energy are:

It can be produced day and night while the solar energy is available only in day.
The production and storage of biogas is cheaper than solar energy.

Question 36

Which is the most abundant non-conventional source of energy?

Sun is the most abundant non-conventional source of energy on earth.

Question 37

Name two states where wind farm projects have been undertaken.

Tamil Nadu and Gujarat are two states where wind farm projects have been undertaken.

Question 38

What are the advantages of producing electricity from water?

The advantages of producing electricity from water are:

Hydel Power is inexhaustible and renewable source of power.
Hydel power projects do not cause any pollution.

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Write an essay on hydel power in India.
Write an essay on hydel power in India. Hydel power is a renewable energy resource because it uses the Earth's water cycle to generate electricity. Water evaporates from the Earth's surface, forms clouds, precipitates back to earth and flows toward the ocean. The movement of water as it flows downstream creates kinetic energy that can be ...
Write an essay on hydel power in India.
Write an essay on hydel power in India. (NCERT class 12 geography, India People and Economy, Chapter-7-Chapter-Mineral and Energy Resources) Answer. Hydel power is a source of energy that is regenerated from running water. To generate it, rainwater is collected and stored by making a dam on the river. The turbine which is installed under the ...
NCERT Solutions for Class 12 Geography Chapter 7 Mineral and Energy
Answer: Solar energy, Wind power, Geo-Thermal, Biomass and Tidal energy are unconventional sources of energy. 3. Answer the following questions in about 150 words: (i) Write a detailed note on the Petroleum resources of India. Answer: Petroleum. Petroleum is the most important source of power in the present age.
Class 12 Geography NCERT Solutions Chapter 7 Mineral and Energy
(b) market based. Digboi is an example of field based and Barauni is an example of market based refinery. There are 18 refineries in India. Question 3.(ii) Write an essay on hydel power in India. Answer: Hydel power is a renewable energy resource because it uses the Earth's water cycle to generate electricity.
Hydel Power
Advantages of Hydel power. It is a clean, non-polluting source of energy. It does not release any toxic gases. Natural Gas, Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG), Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) It is a renewable source of energy that can be repeatedly used. The dams built to produce hydroelectricity help in saving and restoring water.
Hydroelectricity And Hydro Power Plant
Hydro Power Plant. Hydroelectricity is produced by utilising the gravitational force of falling water. To this end, the hydropower plant requires a dam. This dam is placed on a source of water, preferably a river. The dam is a massive wall that blocks the flow of the river, therefore, a lot of water collects behind the dam.
NCERT Solutions for Class 12 Geography Chapter 7 Mineral and Energy
The hydro-electric power plants at Darjeeling and Shivanasamudram were established in 1898 and 1902, respectively. They were among the first in Asia and India has been a dominant player in global hydroelectric power development. India's economically exploitable and viable hydroelectric potential is estimated to be 148,701 MW.
NCERT Solutions for Class 12 Geography Mineral and Energy Resources
Salal Hydel Power Project (J & K) has been completed and the new ones are being taken up. They together would provide over a 1000 MW of power. Chukha Project (Bhutan). Besides these power projects, India constructed a very big hydel power project in Bhutan at Chukha. It was financed by India.
Hydro-Electric Power Resources in India
Growth of Hydro Power in India: The first hydro-electric plant in India was installed at Darjeeling in 1897-98. Soon after, in 1899, the first 1,000 kw, steam-driven power plant was installed at Calcutta. This was followed by a hydro-electric station on the river Cauvery at Sivasundram in 1903. Power was carried with 92 miles of transmission ...
PDF Hydro Electric Power (Hydel Power)
Hydro-electric power is generated by the flow of water through turbine, turning the blades of the turbine. A generator shaft connected to this turbine also turns and hence generates electricity. Following figure shows how hydro-electric power is generated: The main components of a hydel power plant are: Dam/Reservoir/Large buffer tank. Penstock.
Does Hydroelectric Power Have a Role in India's ...
In December, 2021, the Union power ministry sanctioned 29 hydel projects - adding up to 32,415 MW - in the state. But hidden underneath these announcements is a state-financed gamble over hydel's role in India's decarbonisation. As the pressure to cut emissions rises, India will struggle to add new thermal power plants.
Vol 2, April 2022
In December, 2021, the Union power ministry sanctioned 29 hydel projects—adding up to. But hidden underneath these announcements is a state-financed gamble over hydel's role in India's decarbonisation. As the pressure to cut emissions rises, India will struggle to add new thermal power plants.
Hydroelectric power plants in India
Concept -. India has 197 Hydro Power plants. The end of the 19th century saw the development of power in India. Hydro power projects are classified as large and small hydro projects based on their sizes. Different countries have different size criteria to classify small hydro power project capacity ranging from 10MW to 50 MW.
Mini Hydel Plants
Benefits of Mini Hydel Plants. 1. They are environment friendly. (They do not burn coal to generate electricity and hence do not cause pollution) 2. No Need for Large Investments. They do not need large transmission towers and cables. Hence, they are budget friendly. 3.
In India's Three-Way Energy Storage Race, Hydel's Viability Is in
Accordingly, the BJP-headed NDA government is making a huge push on not just batteries and green hydrogen, but also hydel. It wants to hike India's installed hydel capacity to 70,000 MW by 2030 - a 50% jump from the current 45,700 MW. It's also readying a large push on pumped storage. As energy minister R.K. Singh told Economic Times, the ...
Write an essay on hydel power in India.
The hydel power generation, in India, began in the year 1897 with establishment of hydropower plant in Darjeeling district of West Bengal, with an installed capacity of 130 KW. The hydropower potential of India is around 1,45,000 MW and at 60% load factor, it can meet the demand of around 85,000 MW. As of now, around 26% of hydropower potential ...
Hydroelectric Energy Advantages and Disadvantages
Since the water is released to produce electricity, the build-up of water in the dam is stored to produce extra energy until needed. 7. Hydroelectric energy generation does not pollute the atmosphere because the hydroelectric power plant does not produce greenhouse gases. 8. Hydropower plants can be considered a reliable energy generation source.
Hydel Power Plants
Contact this Tutor. HYDEL POWER PLANT HYDEL POWER PLANT: Hydroelectricity is the term referring to electricity generated by hydropower; the production of electrical power through the use of the gravitational force of falling or flowing water. It is the most widely used form of renewable energy. Once a hydroelectric complex is constructed, the ...
Hydel Power- The MOST Contentious of all Renewable Energy Sources
Today India at 5334 large dams has the distinction of being the third largest dam builder in the world. There is hardly any undammed river left in the country. Globally hydropower contributes some 17 percent of electricity generation. In India it is around 13 percent.
PDF An India specific study of Global Hydel Power scenario
An India specific study of Global Hydel Power scenario Bappaditya Shomea, Suman Duttab, ... Power Plant Type Cost ($/kW-hr) $0.11-0.12 Natural Gas $0.053-0.11 Nuclear $0.096 Wind $0.044-0.20 ... purposes as well as micro hydel power plants have vast open spaces. Those vast spaces of canal banks are being utilized for installation of solar ...
Essay on the Hydro-Electricity or Hydel Power in India (1504 Words)
1. The generation of electricity by using the force of falling water is called hydro-electricity. ADVERTISEMENTS: 2. Water is a renewable resource and can be used year after year. Thus, making hydel power cheaper to produce than thermal or nuclear power. 3.
Write an essay on hydel power in india?
Answer: Hydel power is the energy harnessed from running water-streams, rivers or any other artificial or natural water flow. It is one of the oldest method of energy production. Even in the medieval period, people used to derive energy from water wheels. The contribution of hydel power in the world energy production scenario is immense and ...
Mineral and Energy Resources
How important is the hydel power projects for India? Answer. The hydel power projects are important for India because: Energy demand of India is huge and developing country like India need to promote clean, renewable energy source like Hydel power. India has many rivers and geographical features that support the development of Hydel power.

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