India, Jan. 29 -- The Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF&CC) has approved the proposal for rebuilding the Teesta-III dam, despite concerns over its design and stability. The new structure will be a 118.64-metre-tall concrete gravity dam.

The original 1,200 MW Teesta-III Chungthang hydroelectric dam was destroyed in a flash flood on October 3-4, 2023. The flood, triggered by a Glacial Lake Outburst Flood (GLOF) from the South Lhonak Lake, washed away the 60-metre-tall concrete dam, claiming 40 lives.

The project is located on the main Teesta River in Mangan district, utilising a drop of approximately 800 metres between Chungthang and Sankalang villages.

In a meeting held on January 10, 2025 the environment mi...