NEW DELHI —Plans by China to build three dams in Tibet have rung
alarm bells in next-door India, where fears are rising that the
northern nation’s thirst for power and water will one day affect
the flow of the mighty Brahmaputra River, a lifeline for tens of
millions of people. Some of Asia’s most important rivers rise in
Tibet, and China has a reputation in the region for putting its
own soaring energy needs ahead of the interests of its
downstream neighbors. It has no water-sharing agreements with
any countries it borders. Large Chinese dams on the Mekong River
have been blamed for disrupting water flows into countries such
as Thailand and Vietnam, while Chinese dam-building projects in
places such as Burma and Cambodia have been criticized for
displacing people and causing environmental havoc. As its demand
for power soars, China has become the world’s largest dam
builder, and its latest five-year energy plan, announced last
month, laid out proposals for more hydroelectric plants,
including three medium-si