India’s Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has approved an investment of about $2.8bn (Rs26,069.5 crore) for the 1,720MW Kamala Hydropower Project in Arunachal Pradesh.

The project will be located across Kamle, Kra Daadi and Kurung Kumey districts and is expected to be completed within 96 months. It will comprise eight 210MW units and one 40MW unit, with an estimated annual generation of 6,870 million units.

The scheme will be developed through a joint venture between NHPC Limited and the Arunachal Pradesh state government. Federal support includes funding for flood moderation and enabling infrastructure such as roads, bridges and transmission systems.

The project is intended to improve power supply in Arunachal Pradesh, support peak demand, and contribute to grid balancing. It is also expected to provide flood moderation benefits in the Brahmaputra basin.

The state will receive 12% free power from the project, with an additional 1% allocated to a Local Area Development Fund. Around 196km of roads and bridges will be built, alongside social infrastructure funded through dedicated project allocations.

Kamala hydropower project is part of a broader hydropower pipeline led by NHPC Limited in the region, including the Subansiri Lower, Dibang Multipurpose and Etalin projects.

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