[Marina Dai & Indu Chukhu]
YINGKIONG/ITANAGAR, 22 May: Villagers in both Siang and Upper Siang districts on Thursday opposed the deployment of armed personnel in Begging for the proposed 11,000 mw Siang Upper Multipurpose Project (SUMP).
The forces have been deployed in Begging, Geku, Yingkiong, and Boleng, the IGP (law and order) confirmed.
The Siang Indigenous Farmers Forum (SIFF) has reported that Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF) have been forcibly deployed in Begging, the proposed site for carrying out activities to prepare a pre-feasibility report (PFR), despite constant protests by the affected villagers.
An order dated 9 December, 2024, from the home undersecretary, addressed to the director general of police, the inspector general of police, and the deputy commissioners of Upper Siang, Siang and East Siang districts, called for providing accommodation and logistics for force deployment for the SUMP.
The order notified that requisite CAPF, “including the state armed police and lady police force” are to be deployed for the implementation of SUMP in the affected districts.
The order said that one company each is to be deployed in Geku, Uggeng and Jengging, besides five CAPF companies – two on the left side of Begging village, two on the right side of Parong village, and one company at the Boleng NHPC office.
The December order said also that one company of the state police be deployed in Siang HQ Boleng.
This was the 6th protest so far by the villagers in opposition to the PFR activity and construction of the SUMP over the Siang River. The protest wasorganised by local villagers and the SIFF. The villagers said that they will continue the peaceful protest until the CAPF are withdrawn.
Meanwhile, the SIFF strongly refuted claims made by the Adi Baane Kebang (ABK) and the state government that the locals had accepted the survey. It claimed that the ABK passed a resolution supporting the PFR activity without consulting the affected communities.
However, the ABK denied having passed any resolution in agreement with the government. It clarified that “what exists is only a set of minutes from an internal meeting of the ABK central executive body, in which the conduct of the PFR was discussed.”
SIFF legal adviser Bhanu Tatak and its youth wing president Adum Tayom reportedly received a summons for a “peace bond agreement” a few days ago from the East Siang district magistrate.
Earlier, protests were held in Parong, Geku, Komkar, Riew, and other villages, as well. Despite filing complaints against surveyors, no legal action hasbeen initiated, the SIFF said.
“No dam, no survey. The armed forces must leave. We are deeply hurt that the PFR is being carried out without consulting us. We are Indian citizens, we are Arunachali – the forces must withdraw. We have protested many times, and we are protesting again. But this time we will continue protesting peacefully until the forces are removed,” the villagers said.
They added that efforts were made to speak with the director general of police and the Siang SP but no response has been received.
SIFF president Lamuk Padun said: “On the night of 19 May, when the forces arrived, we politely requested them to leave and not to conduct the survey here, but they didn’t listen. We will not allow any survey without our consent. So far, we have not been given a clear decision or shown the full project report. Back in March, during a meeting at the Yingkiong deputy commissioner’s office, we demanded transparency. However, the report has still not been shared with us.”
Nith Paron (29), a student leader of Peram village in Upper Siang district, said that the villagers are alarmed at the presence of the police and ITBP forces.
“Today (Thursday), we even tried to visit the site in Begging but we were not allowed by the Siang district magistrate, despite our request to allow at least three people. I do not know exactly how many forces have come; all I can say is that the government is trying to do it with a forceful intent,” Paron said.
The youth leader added that all the affected villagers are very saddened with this development. “There are many villagers, including me and my parents, who have not eaten food for some days and are having sleepless nights thinking about the displacement. The issue is affecting all age groups,” he said.
All the affected villages are expected to participate in a protest in Begging on Friday, from 9 am onwards. The project-affected families will be staging a dharna and a peaceful protest against the CAPF deployment at the dam survey site in Begging village.
The families, under the banner of the SIFF, in a statement said that they have been opposing the proposed dam since the early 1980s, adding that the survey is a blatant violation of their fundamental rights.
Amid protests last year in December, Chief Minister Pema Khandu had defended the proposed SUMP as a measure to protect the Siang belt from a massive 60,000 mw Chinese dam that is expected to be built in the near future.
The government’s initial plans for the Lower Siang HEP (2,700 mw) and the Siang Upper HEP Stage-II (3,750 mw) had already faced resistance for more than two decades. Amid growing fears and opposition, the capacity was expanded to 11,000 mw without new studies, triggering a wave of protests.
Earlier, the National Institution for Transforming India (NITI) Aayog had proposed a 10,000 mw Siang project, aiming to build a single multipurpose river valley project on the Siang River, featuring a 300-metre-high dam and a power generation capacity of 10,000 mw to “moderate floods and erosion, providing relief in downstream river reaches of Arunachal and Assam.”
