98 households of Arunachal's Riew village backs 11,000 MW Siang upper hydropower project
A memorandum of understanding to this effect was signed here on Friday in the presence of Deputy Chief Minister Chowna Mein, cabinet minister Ojing Tasing, chief secretary Manish Kumar Gupta, Siang deputy commissioner P N Thungon and villagers of Riew.
Officials said Riew is the second-largest village in the Siang belt and the consenting households constitute nearly 62 per cent of the population, marking a turning point in public response to the mega-dam project that once faced stiff resistance in the area.
Earlier this month, over 300 households from Riga, the largest village in the area and previously a key site of opposition, also gave their consent to the project's PFR.
Welcoming the development, Mein, who also holds the power portfolio, said the development marks another important milestone in the government's transformative hydropower initiative, a journey which he termed is rooted in "dialogue, understanding and mutual respect."
"Being a democratic country with a people-friendly government, we believe in taking the people's confidence and making them equal partners in development. Through awareness, technical education and trust-building, we've brought communities onboard," he said.
The deputy chief minister further said the SUMP reflects the government's broader commitment to sustainable and inclusive development.
"From roads to hydropower, every project today echoes the vision of a #ViksitBharat. This MoU reaffirms that inclusive development is possible when the government and the people move forward together, not in opposition, but in understanding," he said.
The growing support for SUMP comes at a time when China has begun construction of a major dam on the Yarlung Tsangpo river, known downstream as the Brahmaputra, triggering fresh concerns in India and Bangladesh.
While Beijing has defended the project and attempted to allay fears, experts in India have warned of possible long-term implications for water security, water flow regulation, and ecological sustainability.
This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Hans India
11 hours ago
- Hans India
Strategic Push to Bolster Chemical Sector Gains Momentum following 'Manthan Shivir'
New Delhi: The Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilisers has laid the groundwork for implementing key recommendations arising from the 'Manthan Shivir' held on April 17, 2025. Minister of State Anupriya Patel confirmed in a written response to a question raised by Naresh Bansal, Kesridevsinh Jhala, Dr. Anil Sukhdeoarao Bonde, Dr. K. Laxman, and Dr. Kavita Patidar on Tuesday. The question sought details on how the Ministry plans to translate the thematic discussions from the Shivir into actionable steps. The 'Manthan Shivir' was organised to find ways to enhance India's chemical and petrochemical sectors as part of the broader national vision for Viksit Bharat @2047. During the Shivir, the Department of Chemicals and Petrochemicals identified six major thematic areas for focused discussion, including industrial innovation, sustainability, skill development, and institutional collaboration. In her reply, Smt. Patel stated that the Ministry has adopted a 'Whole of Government' approach involving inter-ministerial coordination to streamline implementation. Participating entities included the Ministries of Revenue, Pharmaceuticals, Skill Development & Entrepreneurship, MSME, Science & Technology, and Textiles, along with organisations like CSIR, Bureau of Indian Standards, Central Pollution Control Board, and various public sector undertakings. Furthermore, the Ministry confirmed that several Gujarat-based institutions contributed to the discussions and that pilot projects may be initiated in priority districts of Gujarat, reflecting an applied and region-specific follow-through. The suggestions received during and after the Shivir are currently under examination, and further stakeholder consultations are ongoing with industry associations and government departments across India. The initiative is seen as a pivotal step in repositioning India's chemical sector for global competitiveness, domestic resilience, and sustainable growth. Would you like this news item adapted into a briefing format or expanded with stakeholder reactions?
&w=3840&q=100)
Business Standard
18 hours ago
- Business Standard
India's distant promises: Clarity needed for Viksit Bharat, Net Zero goals
The government needs to clearly list out all the desired parameters to be covered under the Viksit Bharat goal, assign appropriate weight to each of them, and set numerical targets wherever applicable Ajay Tyagi Mumbai Listen to This Article Aspirations, backed by conviction, motivate an individual, a company, or a nation to achieve progress and growth. A corporation's vision and mission documents depict its aspirations. As for nations, many aspirations are embedded in various public documents, including some core ones in their constitutions. In addition, from time to time, the political leadership sets various aspirational goals, guided by ideology, expediency, and other commitments. This article is about the two most ambitious long-term declarations made by the present political leadership in India: Viksit Bharat by 2047 and Net Zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2070. The paths to realise these two
Time of India
a day ago
- Time of India
IAFI's Space Policy conference outlines India's satellite roadmap
NEW DELHI, July 25, 2025: The ITU-APT Foundation of India ( IAFI ) organised the two-day Indian Space Policy Conference 2025 (ISPC-25) at Hotel Imperial, New Delhi. The event, held from July 24 to July 25, brought together senior government officials, international regulators, industry leaders, and satellite experts to discuss India's emerging space and spectrum ecosystem. It was attended by over 200 delegates. Participants examined regulatory frameworks, global spectrum policy, satellite applications, Direct-to-Device (D2D) communications, and the path toward India's 'Viksit Bharat' vision across six technical sessions and two plenaries. Shri Anil Kumar Lahoti, Chairman, Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI), in his inaugural address, stated, 'Satellite communication will be pivotal in fulfilling India's digital inclusion goals. With the right spectrum policy and regulatory flexibility—particularly in enabling non-geostationary satellite systems—we can ensure affordable, high-quality connectivity across the most remote corners of the country.' He reaffirmed that TRAI's recent recommendations, including a 4% AGR fee applicable to both GSO and NGSO operators, were designed to create a balanced and innovation-friendly ecosystem. He also emphasised the importance of non-terrestrial networks (NTNs) in delivering up to $250 billion in global socio-economic benefits by 2030, supporting the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). ' Department of Telecommunications (DoT) is working to finalize satellite communications rules—streamlining spectrum allocation, simplifying licensing, and promoting ease of doing business,' Lahoti further said. Ms. Isabelle Mauro, Director-General, Global Satellite Operators Association (GSOA), urged India to embrace a more agile regulatory framework to accelerate deployment, suggesting 'a progressive approach including administrative allocation of satellite spectrum can help ensure digital equity and inclusion'. Mr. Gautam Sharma, Managing Director, Viasat India , raised concerns about global spectrum consolidation and encouraged the Indian government to safeguard its orbital assets. He noted that Viasat was working closely with Indian startups to launch Direct-to-Device (D2D)-enabled satellites by next year. Ms. Revathi Mannepalli, Joint Wireless Advisor and Member of the ITU Radio Regulatory Board, reiterated that the Indian Space Policy 2023 has played a crucial role in enabling private sector participation and supported the establishment of a dedicated space regulator to streamline licensing and enhance transparency. 'India has opened up the space sector to private players, and the way the policy has evolved, it is going to bring in a lot of new jobs and investments,' noted Shri Bharat Bhatia, President of IAFI, commending India's transformative policy shift. Bhatia underlined the organization's commitment to shaping India's telecom and space communication agenda and noted that in recent years, IAFI has emerged as a powerful voice for Indian stakeholders in global telecom and satellite forums. 'With ISPC-25, we are bringing together the right people at the right time to align India's policy and regulatory ecosystem with the massive technological shift being driven by satellite innovation,' he added. Throughout the six technical sessions and two plenaries, delegates explored key aspects of India's space transformation. The first technical session, moderated by Shri Bhatia, focused on India's evolving space policy and regulatory framework. Shri Arun Agrawal, Deputy Director General (Satellite), Department of Telecommunications , provided an overview of policy and licensing structures supporting the satellite sector. Mr. Vinay Paliwal, Deputy Director, Programme Management and Authorization Directorate, IN-SPACe, highlighted efforts to simplify authorizations and catalyze private sector engagement. Lt. Gen. Anil Kumar Bhatt (Retd.), Director General, Indian Space Association (ISpA), spoke about the growing industry-government collaboration and the importance of IN-SPACe as a single-window facilitator. Mr. Tony Azzarelli, Vice President, Eutelsat OneWeb , remarked during the session, 'We've been very busy for the past two years to start providing services in India. We're just waiting for the final touches of the regulations, which are crucial.' He emphasized global coordination for spectrum and orbital resources, particularly for non-geostationary (NGSO) satellite systems. Dr. Laura Roberti, Director for Spectrum and Market Access, Telesat, during the session emphasized the need for internationally harmonized regulations and efficient spectrum access to support sustainable growth in satellite services. The second session addressed spectrum issues in the lead-up to WRC-27, focusing on agenda items 1.1 to 1.6. Shri Amit Gulati, Senior Deputy Wireless Advisor, WPC, Department of Telecommunications, outlined India's preparatory strategy and its alignment with international developments. Participating virtually, Ms. J Sofi, Associate Director (Frequency Management), ISRO Satellite Communication Programme Office, discussed coordination challenges in satellite network deployment and the importance of protecting interference-free operations. Dr. Roberti addressed global regulatory alignment and market access constraints. Ms. Marta Donate Fuente, Spectrum Engineer, Eutelsat OneWeb, joining remotely, offered global insights on fair spectrum sharing and multi-operator coexistence in increasingly congested orbital environments. Session three, chaired by Shri Gulab Chand, Joint Wireless Advisor, Department of Telecommunications, explored spectrum requirements for defence, civil aviation, and maritime safety. Mr. Laurent Parente, Director General of the International Mobile Satellite Organisation (IMSO), delivered a virtual keynote stressing the preservation of interference-free environments for critical safety systems such as GMDSS. Mr. John Dodd, Director of Safety Services at Inmarsat, presented the modernization of maritime safety services. Brigadier Rahul Anand, Director, Joint Communication Electronics Staff (JCES), Integrated Defence Staff, Ministry of Defence, underscored the need to safeguard defence spectrum against encroachment. Mr. Vivek Banzal, Director, CFA, BSNL , reflected on operator priorities. Ms. Donna Bethea-Murphy, Senior Vice President, Regulatory, Viasat, emphasized the importance of protecting L-band spectrum for emerging services like D2D. Mr. Bashir Patel, Senior Advisor, Policy and Spectrum, concluded with a global view of the future of Mobile Satellite Services (MSS). Mr. Lokesh Kabdal, Co-founder and CEO of AeroDome, also participated. Day 2 Highlights On day two, GSOA's Mauro spoke about D2D potential and hybrid integration. Shri N. K. Bhola, Director, WMO, addressed D2D policy gaps. Shri Anand Khare, Member (Services), DCC, DoT, emphasized convergence between terrestrial and non-terrestrial networks. Session 4 of ISPC-25 examined the future of Direct-to-Device (D2D) satellite communications, focusing on spectrum policies, global coordination, and commercial viability. Chaired by Shri Gulab Chand, Joint Wireless Advisor, Department of Telecommunications, the session addressed key WRC-27 agenda items related to MSS and non-terrestrial network integration. Ms. Sonali Nanda, Deputy Director, PMAD, IN-SPACe, emphasized the need for regulatory clarity and harmonized licensing to support private D2D deployments. Shri M. P. S. Alawa, Joint Wireless Advisor, DoT, called for alignment with global spectrum frameworks. Mr. Jitendra Singh, Head of Government Affairs, Qualcomm, highlighted 3GPP standards and chipset readiness for global mobile-satellite interoperability. Ms. Mariona Pazos Rovira of Sateliot outlined the growing role of nanosatellite constellations in enabling affordable IoT applications. Mr. Chris Woolford, Director, Ofcom, UK, offered a European perspective on spectrum coordination and advocated international cooperation. In a panel moderated by Mr. Pankaj Sharma, Partner, EY, experts, including Shri T. R. Dua, Chairman, IAFI, and Shri R. S. Singh, DDG (IoT), TEC, discussed India's leadership potential in D2D, stressing the need for flexible regulation, spectrum efficiency, and interoperability. Session 5, chaired by Shri Arun Agrawal, DDG (Satellite), DoT, explored how satellite technologies support India's Viksit Bharat agenda. Mr. Mukesh Kumar, DDG (Radio), TEC, highlighted the role of satellite-terrestrial convergence in universal broadband. Mr. H Rayappa of ISRO outlined satellite capacity for civilian use. Mr. Sanjay Aggarwal, Director, DCPW, discussed satellite applications in disaster response and public safety. Mr. Prabhat Dikshit, DDG (SMC), DoT, emphasized satellite's role in last-mile connectivity. Mr. Utpal Bhowmick, Principal BD India/APAC, Amazon Kuiper, presented low-latency NGSO solutions for rural connectivity. Mr. Alok Shankar Pandey of DFCCIL explained the integration of satellite systems into logistics and railways. The conference concluded with an important session on Space Sustainability, Ms. Bethea-Murphy and Mr. H. C. Soni, Vice President, IAFI, called for global efforts to address orbital debris, and highlighted the growing challenge to sustainability caused by orbital debris. Soni delivered the vote of thanks. Shri Bhatia concluded the event, and thanked GSOA and other partners for making the event a success. About IAFI ITU-APT Foundation of India (ITU-APT) is a non-profit, non-political, non-partisan Industry foundation registered as a society under the Societies Registration Act, 1960. ITU-APT is working for last 22 years with the prime objective of encouraging involvement of professionals, corporate, public/private sector industries, R&D organizations, academic institutions, and such other agencies engaged in development of Indian Telecom sector in the activities of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) and the Asia Pacific Telecommunity (APT). The Foundation has been recognized as an International/Regional Telecommunications Organization by the International Telecommunications Union (ITU). For any further information, please see our website (DISCLAIMER: The article has been published under ETTelecom's Brand Connect Initiative)
