Siang dam protest: Thousands rally in Itanagar against mega project

Thousands of people marched through Itanagar on Thursday, October 29, to oppose the proposed mega dam on the Siang river and the state government's crackdown on protesters, according to reports from the capital.

The rally went from Akashdeep to IG Park. Participants carried placards and banners and raised slogans against Chief Minister Pema Khandu's government.

What the protesters want

The project at the centre of the dispute is the proposed Siang Upper Multipurpose Project (SUMP), put at about 11,000 MW by protesters and 11,200 MW in official descriptions. Speakers said they reject not only the dam but also the pre-feasibility report (PFR) the government wants to prepare, arguing that a dam of this size would damage the Siang valley's ecology and displace thousands of residents.

Protesters also demanded the release of activists and leaders arrested after recent unrest. Violence broke out in Pasighat earlier, when public property was damaged and a police vehicle was set on fire, and police have since made a number of arrests.

Thomas Borang, president of Adi Bane Kebang United, told the gathering that the people of Siang saw themselves as victims of the project rather than anti-development activists, and that their quarrel was with the way the state and central governments were handling the issue.

Tagori Mize, spokesperson of the Siang Indigenous Farmers Forum (SIFF), said the forum was not against small dams but opposed a mega project and the use of central forces in the state.

Calls for dialogue

The rally came a day after two civil society bodies offered to help calm the situation.

The Arunachal Indigenous Tribes Forum (AITF) announced a seven-member peace committee, chaired by its vice-president Gomar Basar, to open talks between the government and protesting groups, try to prevent further violence and recommend confidence-building steps. It has been asked to report within 20 days. The AITF also objected to the heavy deployment of security forces in Pasighat and nearby areas and asked for them to be withdrawn.

The Arunachal Christian Forum (ACF) separately wrote to the chief minister offering to act as a neutral facilitator for preliminary talks between the government and SIFF.

Background

SUMP has been presented as a project to strengthen India's energy and water security, moderate floods and support regional development, and its strategic importance has been linked to concerns about possible upstream interventions in the Brahmaputra basin. Sections of the local population oppose it over its potential social and environmental impact. The AITF's committee cited the recent violence in Pasighat and Geku as the reason for its intervention.