India hydel potential at 148,701 MW

NEW DELHI, Dec. 4 (UPI) -- India's hydroelectric potential has been assessed at 148,701 megawatts of installed capacity, Power Minister Sushil Kumar Shinde said Tuesday.

In a statement to Parliament, Shinde said that of this amount, 31,439.5 MW had been tapped as of Nov. 15, and 14,177 MW was under construction. Shinde said about 103,000 MW of the estimated potential remains untapped.

"The main reasons for slow pace of development of hydroelectric potential in the country are difficult and inaccessible sites, inadequate infrastructure facilities, environmental forest- and wildlife clearance-related problems, adverse geological conditions and transmission/evacuation constraints," Shinde said.

He said the government was committed to the speedy development of hydropower in the country.

"However, the development of the entire potential will depend on the techno-economic viability of the projects and the policies of the respective host state governments to harness this potential," he said.