Question

In which of the following states, Teesta Urja hydro – power project is proposed to be set up?
A) Sikkim
B) Andhra Pradesh
C) West Bengal
D) Arunachal Pradesh

Answer 1

Hint: Teesta River rises in the eastern Himalayas and flows through the states of Sikkim and West Bengal and through Bangladesh. The hydro power project is by Teesta Urja Ltd, which will be constructing a 1,200 MW Teesta – III hydroelectric plant.

Complete answer:
Hydro Power Company Teesta Urja Ltd started construction of the 1,200 MW Teesta-III hydroelectric plant which is the biggest hydro power project in north Sikkim. The project envisages building a dam on the River – Teesta at Chungthang from where a 13.32 km long tunnel would stretch to Singik.
The mega project is to make the state self-sufficient in the field of electricity generation and also enable it to sell surplus power to other states. Teesta Urja Limited was formed so as to develop the project and has a build-own-operate-transfer contract for 35 years with the government, i.e. after the mentioned time period the project will be returned to the government of Sikkim.

The question that arises is – what is hydropower or hydro electricity?
The answer to that is hydroelectricity is that application by which we apply hydropower to generate electricity. It captures the energy of water to generate electricity. A turbine converts the kinetic energy of falling water into mechanical energy. Then a generator converts the mechanical energy from the turbine into electrical energy.

The potential of India in the field of hydroelectric power is estimated at 148,700 MW at 60% load factor. In the fiscal year 2019–20, the total hydroelectric power generated in India was 156 TWh (excluding small hydro) with an average capacity factor of 38.71%.

Hence the correct answer is option ‘A’.

Note: China is the leading country in terms of hydroelectricity generation, capacity and number of new developments. China (1,302 terawatt) and Canada (398 terawatt) lead the world in hydropower generation in 2019. Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra top the list of the states in India with high hydro power generation capacity.