Within days of China announcing three new hydroelectric projects on the Brahmaputra river and catching India by surprise, the Centre has set the ball rolling to build the strategic Tawang hydroelectric project in Arunachal Pradesh.

The 800-MW power project proposed to be built on the Tawang Chu river has got forest clearance, with the Environment Ministry waiving the cumulative impact assessment for stage-I clearance that it was earlier insisting.