Editor,
The recent pre-feasibility report (PFR) for the Siang Upper Multipurpose Project (SUMP) in Arunachal Pradesh has sparked strong opposition from local indigenous people, particularly the Adi tribe in the Siang and Upper Siang areas. They revere the Siang river as ‘Aane Siang’ (mother river), and believe that building such a large-scale project on it is not only an act of destruction but also a desecration of the deity.
The SUMP reservoir, with a capacity of 9 billion cubic metres and likely to generate approximately 11,000 mw of electricity, is expected to completely submerge 27 villages, affect up to 300 villages, and displace millions of indigenous people.
For example, the Kaptai dam in Bangladesh, which generates only 230 mw of electricity, has flooded 655 square kilometres of land and displaced approximately 100,000 people, predominantly from the Chakma and Hajong communities, who made up about 90% of those affected. Between 40,000 and 64,000 displaced Chakmas and Hajongs migrated to India, primarily to Arunachal, Assam, and Tripura, seeking refuge, where they continue to live a marginalized existence. Despite the then government’s promise of land-for-land compensation, only about a third of the displaced families received land, often of poor quality. This serves as a cautionary tale for the Adi tribe.
As India’s largest hydroelectric dam, the Siang dam will displace even more people. Where will they go to take refuge?
Furthermore, the environmental damage caused by large dam construction is irreversible. The eastern Himalayas are prone to seismic activity, and large-scale deforestation not only degrades local biodiversity but also disrupts ecological systems, potentially leading to disasters such as dam failures and landslides. For example, the Teesta III hydroelectric project in Sikkim. Despite strenuous opposition from the Lepcha community, the government proceeded with the deforestation of over 100 hectares of forests, significantly altering the fragile Himalayan ecosystem. This directly led to a catastrophic event in October 2023 – a glacial lake outburst flood from the South Lhonak Lake – which killed 42 people and left hundreds missing. This event displaced over 10,000 residents in Sikkim and caused secondary flooding in West Bengal (eg, Gajoldoba barrage damage) and Bihar, indirectly affecting millions more.
Preliminary estimates from the National Hydroelectric Power Corporation (NHPC) and the Arunachal government indicate that the SUMP could displace approximately 1,500-2,000 hectares of forest land. Such large-scale deforestation would exacerbate local geological hazards.
These are vivid examples of the Siang dam project. The proposed Siang dam is located in a seismically active and ecologically sensitive region of the eastern Himalayas. If the Indian and Arunachal governments proceed with the dam construction, the consequences of the Siang dam will be the same as those of the Kaptai dam and the Teesta III projects.
We call for an end to the construction of large dams in the fragile Himalayas.
Avyaan Sharma