Overview

• NHPC issued an international tender on July 29 for the Sawalkote project’s Lot-1 planning, design and engineering package, setting a ₹209.8 crore contract value and a 113-month completion schedule.
• The run-of-river scheme includes a 192.5 m roller-compacted concrete gravity dam, three horseshoe-shaped diversion tunnels and an underground powerhouse with eight 225 MW units plus a 56 MW environmental flow station.
• Originally conceived in 1984, the 1,856 MW Sawalkote project was delayed for decades by Pakistan’s objections under the 1960 treaty before India placed it in abeyance in April.
• Sawalkote is one of seven Jammu and Kashmir hydropower ventures totaling 5,388 MW, with Pakal Dul, Kawar and Kiru already under advanced construction.
• The Indus Waters Treaty remains in abeyance with data-sharing and six-month notice requirements paused as India links its restoration to Pakistan’s counterterrorism actions.