• Source:JND
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Arunachal Chief Minister Pema Khandu warned about China's mega dam being built near the state border and termed it a “ticking water bomb” with a capacity to pose an existential threat. The Yarlung Tsangpo dam project was announced after Chinese Premier Li Keqiang visited the border region in 2021.

“The issue is that China cannot be trusted. No one knows what they might do," said Arunachal CM in an interview at PTI headquarters.

“Setting aside the military threat from China, it seems to me that this is a far bigger issue than anything else. It is going to cause an existential threat to our tribes and our livelihoods. It is quite serious because China could even use this as a sort of ‘water bomb’," Khandu was quoted as saying by PTI.

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Khandu said the world's largest dam project on the Yarlung Tsangpo river, the Tibetan name for the River Brahmaputra, is a matter of grave concern as China is not a signatory to the international water treaty and so it was not bound to abide by international norms.

“But China is not a signatory, and that is the problem… Suppose the dam is built and they suddenly release water, our entire Siang belt would be destroyed. In particular, the Adi tribe and similar groups… would see all their property, land, and especially human life, suffer devastating effects," the Arunachal CM said.

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China approved the construction of the USD 137 billion, five-year project in 2024. It is projected to produce 60,000 MW of power, making it the world’s largest hydropower dam, the PTI said citing reports.