Tensions surrounding the proposed Siang Upper Multipurpose Project (SUMP) escalated sharply in Arunachal Pradesh's Upper Siang district on Monday, as demonstrators set fire to a Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF) camp and damaged multiple vehicles. The confrontation marks a severe escalation in local resistance against the administration's ongoing Preliminary Feasibility Report (PFR) activities for the massive hydropower initiative.
Demands to Halt Preliminary Surveys
Agitating groups in the region have been strictly insisting on an immediate cessation of the ongoing survey operations. Local demonstrators maintain that any technical groundwork must pause until extensive consultations are conducted with indigenous communities likely to be impacted by the development. Tensions had already been building across the district over recent days, culminating in Monday's confrontation where an anti-dam gathering degenerated into arson and property destruction.
Dialogue Offer from Chief Minister and Deferral by Farmers' Body
The violence erupted despite a recent diplomatic push from the state government to resolve the impasse through formal dialogue. Chief Minister Pema Khandu had invited opposing organisations for a meeting scheduled on October 5 to address community grievances regarding the PFR assessment. Nevertheless, the Siang Indigenous Farmers' Forum (SIFF), a prominent group steering the anti-dam movement, decided against attending the meeting on Monday. Instead, the organisation requested that discussions be postponed until after October 11, stating that its members required further time to formulate a unified community stance.
State Assurances on Land and Feasibility Work
Chief Minister Pema Khandu has repeatedly sought to calm local apprehensions by asserting that the ongoing PFR exercise does not indicate the start of construction, nor does it represent a conclusive green light for the dam. According to the Chief Minister, current operations are restricted solely to fundamental technical evaluations, such as obtaining subterranean rock samples. He emphasised that the exercise involves neither compulsory land acquisition nor the disruption of community agricultural plots and forest territory.
Mandatory Reviews Preceding Any Final Approval
Addressing future steps, the Chief Minister pointed out that establishing technical and economic viability through the PFR would only be the beginning of a lengthy regulatory process. Before actual civil work could even be evaluated, the project would need to complete a comprehensive Social Impact Assessment, an Environment Impact Assessment, and the drafting of a Detailed Project Report. Khandu stressed that public consultations remain mandatory prior to any conclusive determination regarding project construction, though Monday's unrest has significantly heightened law-and-order concerns in Upper Siang.
