Question

Salal is the hydro power project in ______________.
A.Haryana
B.Jammu and Kashmir
C.Himachal pradesh
D.Punjab

Answer 1

Hint: This state is located in the northern part of India. It shares its border with Pakistan and China. It has become a favoured destination for visitors around the world due to its natural scenery and picturesque locations.

Complete answer:
The Salal Dam is a run-of-the-river hydropower project on the Chenab River in the Reasi district of Jammu and Kashmir, also known as the Salal Hydroelectric Power Station. It was the first hydropower project established under the Indus Water Treaty regime by India in Jammu and Kashmir.
In 1920, the Salal project was conceived. The Jammu and Kashmir government initiated feasibility studies on the project in 1961, and a project plan was prepared in 1968. The Central Hydroelectric Project Control Board (under the Ministry of Irrigation and Power of the Government of India) began construction in 1970. A two-stage powerhouse producing 690 MW of power using the head provided by the dam was included in the design of the plant.

India completed the project in 1987 after signing a bilateral agreement with Pakistan in 1978, with major compromises made to Pakistan in the construction of the dam, reducing its height, removing the working reservoir, and plugging the under-sluices intended for sediment control. In the interest of bilateralism, the sacrifices weakened the long-term viability of the dam, which faded in five years. It actually operates at a capacity factor of 57 percent. Its future in the long run is unclear.
Since the agreement was concluded in 1978, the construction of the project was delegated on an agency basis to the National Hydroelectric Power Company (NHPC). In 1975, with an authorised capital of Rs. 200 crore, NHPC was established by the Government of India. Project Salal was the first project.
The Salal project was passed to NHPC on an ownership basis after completion. It is said that the Government of Jammu and Kashmir had a Memorandum of Understanding with the Government of India to obtain a depreciated cost for the scheme. According to the National Conference party, however, the coalition government in power in 1985, run by the National Conference's Ghulam Mohammad Shah-wing and the Indian National Congress, lost the rights of the state over the initiative.

Hence, the correct answer is option (B).

Note: 12.5% of the electricity produced from the project is obtained by the state of Jammu and Kashmir. The remainder is transmitted to the Northern Grid, where the states of Punjab, Haryana, Delhi, Himachal Pradesh, Rajasthan, and Uttar Pradesh are spread. Jammu and Kashmir are now purchasing extra electricity at daily rates.