A proposed ₹10,094.03-crore pumped storage project in Tamil Nadu’s Jawadhu Hills has triggered growing concern among tribal communities living around the proposed development area.
The Alleri Pumped Storage Project, planned as an 1,800-MW facility in Anaicut Taluk of Vellore district, is being developed by Adani Hydro Energy Fourteen Limited (AHE14L), a wholly owned subsidiary of Adani Green Energy Limited.
The project has not yet received environmental clearance. However, its proposed footprint is already becoming clear.
Two new reservoirs have been planned, along with dams, tunnels, an underground powerhouse and new access roads. The proposal requires more than 337 hectares of land, including over 228 hectares of forest land.
For tribal communities living across villages in the Jawadhu Hills region, that is enough to raise a difficult question:
What will happen to their homes, forests, water sources and livelihoods if the project eventually goes ahead?
The 1,800-MW Project
The Alleri project was initially conceived as a 1,500-MW pumped storage facility before being expanded to its current proposed capacity of 1,800 MW.
The project is planned with six units of 300 MW each.
Its proposal includes two new reservoirs:
- An upper reservoir near Nellimarathukollai
- A lower reservoir near Sivanathapuram
The system is designed to store electricity in the form of pumped water.
During periods of low electricity demand, water would be pumped from the lower reservoir to the upper reservoir. During peak-demand hours, the stored water would be released back through turbines to generate electricity.
The project is estimated to generate around 3,840 million units of electricity annually, with generation planned for approximately 6.15 hours a day.
The current estimated cost of the Alleri project is ₹10,094.03 crore.
2024 Adani Investment MoU
The Alleri project emerged from a larger investment commitment signed during the Tamil Nadu Global Investors Meet in January 2024.
On January 7, 2024, the Government of Tamil Nadu and Adani Group signed a Memorandum of Understanding for investments worth ₹24,500 crore covering three pumped-storage projects:
- Alleri
- Thenmalai
- Aliyar
Together, the three proposed projects were expected to have a combined capacity of 4,900 MW, with investments planned over five to seven years.
The distinction between these figures is important.
₹24,500 crore was the proposed investment commitment covering all three pumped-storage projects under the 2024 MoU.
The current estimated cost of the Alleri project alone is ₹10,094.03 crore.
Alleri was subsequently taken forward as an 1,800-MW project.
More Than 337 Hectares of Land Required
According to the project’s April 2026 Pre-Feasibility Study Report, the proposed development would require a significant intervention in the Arasampattu Reserve Forest landscape.
The total land requirement is estimated at 337.452 hectares.
Of this, approximately 228.352 hectares is forest land.
The project would involve:
- Two dams
- Two reservoirs
- An underground powerhouse
- Pressure tunnels
- Tailrace tunnels
- Construction facilities
- Access infrastructure
The proposal also includes approximately 15 km of new roads and the strengthening of another 5 km of existing roads to provide access to different project components.
For a large pumped-storage project, the infrastructure footprint extends well beyond the electricity-generating facility itself.
Reservoirs, dams, roads, tunnels and construction activity could collectively alter parts of the surrounding landscape.
Why Are Jawadhu Hills Villagers Already Afraid?
The project has not yet received environmental clearance.
There has also been no final approval confirming that construction can begin.
Yet villagers living around the proposed project area are already worried.
The reason is uncertainty.
Specific locations have been identified for the reservoirs. The land requirement has been calculated. The forest land involved has been identified. The project’s engineering infrastructure has been proposed.
In other words, the project may still be awaiting approval, but it is no longer just an idea.
For communities living around the proposed project area, the planning process has already entered their landscape.
Villagers reportedly know little about the project in detail. They know that something significant is being planned around their forests and settlements, but they fear they could eventually be affected by a development whose full implications they do not yet understand.
Their concerns are centred around a simple question:
Fear of Uprooted Lives, Even Without a Confirmed Displacement Order
For tribal communities whose lives are closely connected to the surrounding natural landscape, changes to forests and water systems can have consequences that go far beyond the physical land occupied by a project.
There is no basis at this stage to state that all villages around the project will be displaced.
The project documents indicate that the selected site was intended to avoid resettlement and rehabilitation issues.
However, villagers fear that a large infrastructure project could still change their lives directly or indirectly.
Their concerns are about the impact on:
- Access to forests
- Local water resources
- Movement within the region
- Roads and surrounding land
- Agricultural activity
- Forest-dependent livelihoods
- The wider ecological landscape
This is why fear has emerged even before the final approval stage.
Alleri Project Still Awaits Environmental Clearance
The proposed project has not yet received environmental clearance.
The Union government’s Expert Appraisal Committee for River Valley and Hydroelectric Projects has recommended the project’s Terms of Reference (ToR).
This is an important distinction.
A ToR recommendation is not the same as environmental clearance.
It represents an early stage in the environmental appraisal process and requires the project developer to undertake detailed environmental studies before the proposal can be considered for final environmental clearance.
The approval process will require further examination of the project’s potential impact.
What Studies Has the Committee Requested?
The Expert Appraisal Committee has sought detailed information and studies on several environmental issues.
These include:
Water availability
A study on water availability and usage covering a 10-km radius around the project area.
Forest compensation
A compensatory plantation plan prepared in consultation with the Forest Department.
Forest ecosystem services
An assessment of the ecosystem services provided by the forest land proposed for diversion.
Cost-benefit analysis
An analysis that takes into account the value of forest ecosystem services that could be affected.
Reduction of forest-land requirement
An examination of whether the project can be designed or modified to reduce its forest-land requirement.
Aquatic biodiversity
A detailed study of aquatic biodiversity.
Greenhouse-gas emissions
An assessment of greenhouse-gas emissions associated with the project.
Wildlife-related requirements
The project will also require the necessary wildlife-related assessments and certification.
These requirements underline the fact that the project is still undergoing environmental examination.
Forest Clearance Is Also Still Pending
The project proposal requires the diversion of approximately 228.352 hectares of forest land.
This will require forest clearance.
The Expert Appraisal Committee noted that the developer had not yet submitted the Stage-I forest-clearance proposal and directed it to initiate the required process.
This means the project still has significant regulatory stages to cross before it can move towards construction.
The environmental and forest clearance processes could require further studies, modifications, safeguards or changes to the project proposal.
What Could the Project Mean for Jawadhu Hills?
For Tamil Nadu’s energy sector, pumped-storage projects are increasingly important as the state expands renewable energy capacity.
Solar and wind generation can vary depending on weather and time of day. Pumped-storage projects can help store energy and release electricity during periods of high demand.
From that perspective, the proposed Alleri project represents a major energy-storage investment.
But for Jawadhu Hills, the project presents a more complicated question.
The same landscape being assessed for a large electricity-storage project is also a region of forests, water systems, wildlife and tribal settlements.
The challenge will be determining whether a project of this scale can move forward without causing disproportionate environmental and social consequences.
The Real Question Is Yet to Be Answered
The Alleri Pumped Storage Project is not yet a dam under construction.
It is still a proposed project undergoing the environmental appraisal process.
But its scale is already clear.
An 1,800-MW power project. Two new reservoirs. More than 337 hectares of land. Over 228 hectares of forest land. Dams, tunnels, an underground powerhouse and new roads.
For the villagers of Jawadhu Hills, these are not merely numbers in a project report.
They represent a possible transformation of the landscape around them.
The project may ultimately receive approvals, be modified, face additional conditions or undergo further changes during the regulatory process.
For now, however, one thing is clear.
The villagers may not know every technical detail of the Alleri project, but they know something massive is being planned around them. Their fear is that, if the project goes ahead, they may be the ones asked to live with the consequences.