The Supreme Court has issued notice on a plea challenging the reconstruction and disinvestment of the Teesta-III Hydroelectric Project after the 2023 Sikkim GLOF disaster. The plea cites environmental risks, lack of public consultation, and arbitrary disinvestment of a public project.
The Supreme Court on Monday issued notice on a plea challenging the reconstruction and disinvestment of the Teesta-III Hydroelectric Power Project in Sikkim. The plea raises serious concerns about environmental safety, disaster preparedness, and transparency in decision-making after the devastating 2023 Glacial Lake Outburst Flood (GLOF).
The bench of Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta was hearing a Special Leave Petition (SLP) filed against a Sikkim High Court judgment dated August 7, 2025, which had dismissed a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) challenging the State government’s decision to reconstruct the project and disinvest its stake.
The petition was filed through Advocate-on-Record Raghvendra Kumar before the Supreme Court. The petitioners argued that the High Court’s order was “cursory and unreasonable,” and that it failed to properly consider serious ecological issues and human survival concerns arising from the October 3–4, 2023 disaster.
The Glacial Lake Outburst Flood (GLOF) in 2023 caused massive flooding in the Teesta river basin. The flood led to widespread destruction of infrastructure, including the Teesta-III dam at Chungthang, and displaced thousands of people living in the region.
As per the plea, at least 1,756 families, consisting of more than 7,000 people, were displaced due to the disaster. The flood resulted in 55 confirmed deaths, while more than 70 people were reported missing. More than 2,000 houses were destroyed, and several districts including Mangan, Gangtok, Namchi, and Pakyong suffered heavy damage.
The petition states that despite such large-scale destruction, the authorities did not conduct any proper post-disaster assessment report, environmental impact study, or public consultation before deciding to rebuild the dam.
One of the main challenges in the plea is against the environmental clearance granted by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change in January 2025 for the reconstruction of the 1200 MW project. The clearance reportedly permits a major redesign of the dam, increasing its height from 60 meters to more than 118 meters, and this was done without any public hearing.
The petition argues that such a decision ignores the fragile and earthquake-prone Himalayan environment, especially when experts and earlier studies have already warned about the dangers related to glacial lakes and extreme weather conditions in the region. The plea further states that the 2023 disaster itself happened because these warnings were ignored earlier.
Apart from environmental issues, the petition also questions the Sikkim government’s decision to disinvest its 60.02% stake in the project in favour of a private company. According to the plea, the decision was taken in a “hurried, opaque, and arbitrary” manner, just a few months before the State Assembly elections, and it allegedly violated established disinvestment policies.
The petition claims that the Teesta-III project was a profit-making project that could have been revived, as it had significant receivables and cash reserves. Therefore, the disinvestment was not financially necessary and was not in public interest. The plea also alleges that the decision resulted in undue benefit to a private entity at the cost of public resources, raising concerns about possible irregularities in the process.
Importantly, the petition also states that local tribal communities, especially the Bhutia and Lepcha communities living in the Teesta basin, were not consulted before taking the decision. The plea argues that this violates legal safeguards that apply to development projects in protected and restricted areas, including those related to Inner Line Permit (ILP) compliance.
The petition also raises broader environmental concerns about Sikkim’s increasing ecological vulnerability. It points out that there has been a rise in landslides, glacier melting, and the formation of new glacial lakes due to climate change.
Studies conducted by institutions like the Wadia Institute of Himalayan Geology show that glaciers in the region are melting faster, which increases the risk of future Glacial Lake Outburst Floods.
After hearing the submissions, the Supreme Court issued notice in the matter and agreed to examine the issues raised in the plea regarding environmental safety, disaster risk, and the legality of the disinvestment decision.
Case Title:
Tseten Tashi Bhutia v. State of Sikkim
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