This book is essential reading for economists, power sector officials, power generation companies and environmentalists alike.
Dr.Bharat Jhunjhumwala holds a BSc degree in physics, chemistry and mathematics. He earned his PhD in food and Resource Economics from University of Florida at a tender age of 23 years. He joined Indian institute of management, Bangalore as Assistant professor immediately thereafter. He lived in a slum for two years to understand poverty and organized the Trade Union at IIM during the Emergency. He resigned from the IIM and became a consultant to donor agencies like Swiss Development Cooperation, Oxfam, Care, Overseas Development Institute and others mainly on rural development and watershed issues. He writes a column on economic issues for about 50 newspapers in india. He lives on the banks of River Alaknanda in uttarakhand on the feet of Lord Badri Vishal.
Hydropower dams are being removed in America while they are being built in india.
Our experts calculate that immense benefits can be reaped from hydropower while America calculations show that hydropower is costly if economic costs of loss of fishing, recreation, biodiversity, etc. are taken into account. The use of rivers for these alternate activities generates welfare directly by improving the quality of life. It also generates large incomes from these alternate activities. They are removing dams because they reckon benefits from free flows of rivers to be larger than from generation of hydropower.