Guwahati: Thirty rights organisations from across India have urged the Arunachal Pradesh government to immediately stop all activities related to the proposed Siang Upper Multipurpose Project (SUMP) and withdraw Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF) deployed in the Siang region.
These groups extended their full support to the Siang Indigenous Farmers’ Forum (SIFF), which has led widespread protests against the nearly 12,000 MW hydropower project on the Siang River.
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Earlier this week, tensions flared in Beging village in Siang district after the state government deployed CAPF personnel to conduct a pre-feasibility survey for the dam.
In response, angry villagers set fire to a hanging bridge to block the entry of security forces into the area.
Local communities have consistently opposed the project, citing fears that the dam would displace residents, submerge entire villages, and destroy agricultural land.
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Protests have erupted repeatedly over the years, and opposition to the presence of the army and hydropower-related activity remains strong.
In a joint statement issued on Friday, the rights groups demanded that the government immediately take the following actions:
- Withdraw all CAPF forces from the Siang, Upper Siang, and East Siang districts;
- Remove all equipment, including a drilling machine, from the survey site in Beging;
- Guarantee that no further surveys or activities will occur without the “free, prior, and informed consent” of affected communities.
These demands reflect those made earlier by the SIFF, which continues to lead grassroots resistance in the region.
The signatories to the statement include the National Alliance of People’s Movements, People for Aravallis (Haryana), Chalakudypuzha Samrakshana Samiti (Kerala), Affected Citizens of Teesta (Sikkim), South Asia Network on Dams, Rivers and People (New Delhi), and the Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) Liberation.
The groups called on the state government to engage directly with communities, halt the SUMP project entirely, and conduct a transparent and inclusive review of its environmental and social impacts.
They also pressed for full implementation of the Forest Rights Act, 2006, to restore indigenous land rights and strengthen traditional forest governance systems in Arunachal Pradesh.
In their statement, the groups proposed that the government consider decentralized and ecologically sustainable alternatives to large-scale hydropower, such as distributed mini-hydel projects, to meet local energy needs.
They also appealed to the Government of India to pursue a fair water-sharing agreement with China instead of engaging in a competitive race to construct mega-dams along the transboundary Siang River, which originates as the Yarlung Tsangpo in Tibet.
The rights organisations further condemned the state government’s legal action against lawyer and activist Ebo Mili, who faces charges for allegedly leading protests in Beging. They demanded that all charges against Mili and other demonstrators be dropped.
The National Hydroelectric Power Corporation is slated to implement the 11,500 MW SUMP project, with strong backing from both the state and central governments.
Officials have defended the project by claiming it would help regulate the river’s flow and reduce flood risks in the region, especially as China pushes ahead with a 66 GW dam on the Yarlung Tsangpo.
However, the joint statement countered these claims by citing examples from Kerala (2018), Uttarakhand, and Sikkim (2023), where large hydropower projects intensified flooding instead of preventing it.
The groups also raised concerns over the lack of transparency surrounding hydropower projects in Arunachal Pradesh. They pointed out that the government has failed to provide accessible environmental and social impact assessments to the public and has ignored the repeated demands of affected communities.