The Karnataka High Court has directed the state government to stop work in forest areas for the Sharavathi Pumped Storage Hydroelectric Project until further orders. Environmentalists, who challenged the State Wildlife Board’s approval in the Sharavathi Lion-Tailed Macaque Wildlife Sanctuary, welcomed the ruling. The project, proposed in 2017, seeks to generate 2,000 MW amid opposition over ecological impacts.
Earlier this month, the Karnataka High Court ordered the state government to halt construction in forest areas for the Sharavathi Pumped Storage Hydroelectric Project pending further directives. This followed a petition by environmentalists questioning the State Wildlife Board’s approval for the project within the Sharavathi Lion-Tailed Macaque Wildlife Sanctuary, a biodiversity hotspot in the Western Ghats. The ruling has reinvigorated protests that began when the Karnataka Power Corporation Limited (KPCL) proposed the 2,000 MW pumped storage facility in 2017 along the Sharavathi river valley. The river spans about 130 km through the Western Ghats before reaching the Arabian Sea and already hosts four major hydel power stations. KPCL aims to address peak energy demands reaching 18,000 MW daily, aligning with the Central Electricity Authority’s push for 50% non-fossil fuel capacity by 2030. The project cost has risen from an estimated ₹4,800 crore in 2017 to nearly ₹10,240 crore. The State Wildlife Board approved it in January 2025 with conditions, reducing planned tree felling from over 16,000 to 7,000-8,000. It has in-principle nod from the National Board of Wildlife, but forest and environmental clearances remain pending. Opposition from environmentalists, locals, farmers’ groups, and religious leaders in Shivamogga and Uttara Kannada districts highlights risks to forests, endangered lion-tailed macaques, and increased landslip vulnerability. Petitioner Akhilesh Chipli claims it violates laws barring non-forest activities. A site inspection by Praneetha Paul, Deputy Inspector General of Forests at the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change regional office, opposed the project, warning of destruction to wet evergreen forests and isolation of macaque populations. KPCL held meetings in October 2025 to argue minimal impact and clean energy benefits, but a Ministry expert panel countered that the “limited operational benefit offered by the project seems outweighed by the irreversible ecological, environmental and social costs involved.” The court order and panel report pose challenges for KPCL’s next steps before the court and National Board of Wildlife.