A Masterclass in How to Not Build a Dam

Ah yes, the Punatsangchu Hydropower Project I, now entering its 17th year of what can only be described as… performance art.

Because calling it a “project” at this point feels a bit generous.

Seventeen years. Not a typo. Seventeen. Long enough for a child to be born, grow up, and start asking uncomfortable questions like, “Is the dam real?” And honestly, fair question.

We are now told, with a straight face, that construction has been “reactivated”. Again. With the ceremonial pouring of a few cauldrons of concrete, because nothing says progress like symbolic gestures and selective optimism.

And just when you think the script cannot get better, along comes talk of PHP-III. Yes, a third project. Because clearly, if the first one does not work, the logical next step is… to build another one nearby.

Confidence, or comedy? Hard to tell.

Innovation, Bhutanese Style

Let us not forget the bold decision-making that got us here.

Relocate the dam site without proper geotechnical investigation? Done.

Call repeated landslides “geological surprises”? Inspired.

Ignore safety concerns raised by experts? Naturally.

At this rate, we may soon discover gravity itself is just another “unexpected development”.

And when the land kept sliding, what was the response? Engineering rethink? Structural redesign?

No. A rimdro.

Because when geology fails, spirituality steps in. It is good to see a multidisciplinary approach in action.

Safety is Just a Suggestion

We have expert reports saying the site is unsafe.

We have glacial lake risks that are no longer hypothetical, but inevitable.

We have ageing equipment that might not even work by the time anything is completed.

But sure, let’s proceed.

After all, what is a megaproject without a bit of existential risk?

The Timeline of Excellence

The timeline reads less like a development plan and more like a slow-motion blooper reel.

Slides in 2013, 2016, 2019.

Flood damage.

Billions in irregularities.

A safety factor below acceptable levels.

And yet, here we are, confidently moving forward.

If persistence alone built dams, this one would have powered half of South Asia by now.

The Bigger Question

At some point, one has to ask, is this about energy generation, or is this about saving face?

Because the longer this goes on, the harder it becomes to admit that perhaps, just perhaps, this was never going to work.

But no, onward we go.

New plans, new announcements, new ceremonies.

Same river. Same problems.

Final Thoughts

There is something almost admirable about this level of commitment.

Not to results, mind you, but to the illusion of progress.

Seventeen years in, the only thing that has been consistently generated is narrative.

And if storytelling could produce electricity, this project would finally be a success.

An artists rendition of the dam