The “Great Bend” & Medog County

The “Great Bend” & Medog County

• The “Great Bend” is a dramatic geographical turn in the Yarlung Zangbo River (the upper stream of the Brahmaputra) where the river takes a U-turn around the Namcha Barwa mountain (one of the easternmost peaks of the Himalayas).
• This occurs just before the river exits Tibet (China) and enters Arunachal Pradesh (India), where it is called the Siang River, and later becomes the Brahmaputra in Assam.

Strategic Importance:

The Great Bend is crucial for India because:

• • It lies very close to the Line of Actual Control (LAC) between India and China.
  • Control over the river at this point gives China significant leverage to alter water flow downstream into India and Bangladesh.
  • It is a sensitive ecological and hydrological zone.

Medog County (also called Motuo or Metok), Tibet (China):

• Medog County is located in the Nyingchi Prefecture of the Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR) of China.
• It is the last county in Tibet through which the Yarlung Zangbo flows before entering Indian territory.
• The area is mountainous, remote, and ecologically rich, but it is also being developed aggressively by China for strategic and hydropower purposes.

Hydropower Plans:

• China has planned a massive hydropower project in this region, making use of the steep gradient and high river flow at the Great Bend.
• The project will potentially generate 60,000 MW, making it the largest hydroelectric power station in the world upon completion.